Love to Hate You, Hate to Love You
by Dakyloquacious
Summary: He's their enemy, and she's supposed to hate him. But after all that had happened between them before...why did this happen to her? Couldn't she just kill him off? Alas, no. /old
1. Gotta Love Open Windows

**Chapter 1**

**A/N**: Well, here we go…SEQUEL TO _MATH_, BABY!!!!!! If anyone is reading this who hasn't read _Math_ yet…read it or you're screwed. I chose a weird place to end that fic at…yeah…-_-" Anywho, same as in _Math_, Alice and Maskerado-kun aren't the same peoples, blah blah blah…yeah…

**Disclaimer**: You guessed it, I _totally_ own Bakugan! That's why Runo and Masquerade are the main couple, Naga is **Supreme Ruler **(after moi, of course…) and Dan is currently freezing in my refrigerator!

Of _course_ I **don't** own Bakugan! You see Masquerade still hanging around in the last episode? *sniffles* Meanie producer peoples…mad at them, I am…_furious_, in fact…

* * * * * * * * * * * *

**_A Pointless And Completely Unhelpful Recap With No Particular Purpose Other Than I Needed Something To Do While I Was Thinking About How To Start…_**

_Masqu…I was really frustrated, okay? And he just happened to be there, bugging me…I wasn't really focusing. You gotta believe me…I really don't like him…Runo…what exactly happened between you two…Alice…I think…I think that…that I might actually…actually…_like_…_

_Runo being in love with Masquerade was something that just wouldn't work…_

_It's not as though her opinion matters much anyways. She's just another insignificant brawler…It just won't do…it would be better to put them in their place…especially…Runo…_

_Masquerade being in love with Runo just wouldn't work…_

_For a moment, he was enveloped in the sunlight slanting through the window, an incorporeal shadow in her blinded eyes, almost…angelic. But the moment passed as her pupils adjusted to the sudden light, and he was once again a mere human…Her enemy…You creep…after that…what the hell, okay?! Just what the hell…I don't understand…_

…She still kept them closed as a hand roughly grabbed her chin, yanking it up. She tensed for a moment, hesitated. That hesitation was just enough for a pair of lips to press against hers…

_**And Now That That Piece-Of-Crap-Recap Is Over…ONTO THE STORY!**_

_You idiot, what are you doing?! She's gonna _kill_ you now! Stop, stop right now! …She hasn't done anything yet, perhaps she doesn't mind…of _course_ she minds! You just caught her off guard, idiot! But maybe…no maybes! You're an _idiot!_ Why are you doing this anyways? What's she gonna think about this?! You probably just _totally_ destroyed your reputation! STOP! Even if it _is_ kinda…nice…I don't want to…NO, STOP! But she really doesn't mind…IDIOT!_

Perhaps he should have listened to the voice in his head that was screaming at him. It did have some very valid points; he was dead for sure now. But…who wants to listen to the voice that yells and insults you constantly? Certainly not him.

He let his fingers relax around her chin, tilting his face to the side slightly and leaning in. He could feel her quivering under his light touch, and the corners of his mouth turned up into a smirk. This was strangely…nice…

The little mental voice screamed louder, matching the protests from Tigrerra, vague to his ears. What could either do right now? The most Tigrerra could do was try to 'tackle' him again, and the voice…well, he could tune out the voice. Think about better things…like how nice this was…

The sudden memory of Dan and Alice standing shocked in the doorway barged into his mind. Mess that was…

Paranoia over pleasure, unfortunately…of course, he could always just _forget_ paranoia…forget that Dan or someone else could come in here and try to kill him for this…shouldn't be _that_ hard…

He never got the chance to forget those insignificant things. Runo suddenly pulled away, eyes wide open and staring, wincing in the reflected light from the mask. She was trying to say something, her mouth opening and then closing again, dumb with shock.

Absentmindedly, he brushed a finger along her jawline, the smirk growing just the tiniest bit. "There, that got you nice and quiet, didn't it?"

Wrong thing to say, apparently.

"_You!_" She slapped his hand away, her voice so high and shrill that he was surprised that he didn't have to be a dog to hear it. "Wha…what…_creep!_"

_See, _that's_ why you listen to the voice that yells and insults you constantly. Idiot. Better start making your excuses to Saint Peter…_

"What was that for?!" she continued to squeak, her hands twitching as though eager to wrap themselves around his neck. "Why…you…what…do you…WHAT?!"

"Do something about him, milady!" Tigrerra cried out, hopping up and down. "You can't let him get away with this!"

"It…was an accident?" Masquerade lied nervously, composure gone and wishing very much so that he would just back up and run away. But something kept him rooted to the spot; perhaps she was like Medusa, able to turn man to stone with nothing more than a look…

She slowly walked around him, an evil gleam in her eyes that wasn't just there because the lighting conveniently made it that way. He turned around, unwilling to have his back _or_ side to her. Not a complete Medusa then…she took a step forward and he took a step back, much to his disgust. Hadn't he been in control of the situation just seconds ago? What happened to that control? Had he actually _lost_ it to this girl?

Shameful…but it wasn't _his_ fault she was so scary…

He bumped up against the wall, the windowsill digging into the small of his back. "Runo, I _swear_ that it was an accident…" Furtively, he crossed his fingers, for safety's sake. "Be a sweetie and don't kill me…"

_Sweetie_. The magic word.

"YOU!" she howled, taking another sudden step forward, arms out, hands at his shoulders, hands pushing him roughly…

"Whoa!" His arms windmilled as the force of leverage took place, trying to keep himself up. No use though; Runo was too close, too strong. He caught a glimpse of the blank shock on her face before tipping backwards.

Automatically, she reached forward as his hand groped the air that he was suddenly losing. But it was already gone.

She gasped as a flailing foot kicked her in the stomach; just a light blow that wasn't enough to stun her, though. She grabbed onto the foot, gripping it instinctively, and found herself yanked forward, gasping again as she slammed into wall, the upper half of her body doubling over the sill. She whipped out her other arm and grabbed Masquerade's ankle; it twisted around a bit in her grasp.

The first thing to hit the outside wall was his back; jolts of pain flashed up his spine, knocking the breath clear out of his lungs. His head soon followed, crashing against the siding and bouncing off. The headband of his mask didn't help much, nor the coat falling around his face. Ridiculous this must look to any passerby's…

"Milady, I didn't mean for you to kill him!" Tigrerra shrieked, now hopping in agitation. "Don't let him fall!"

"I know that, Tig," Runo grunted, tightening her grip. "Hold on, Masquerade!"

He would have _liked_ to answer, to yell and scream at her for trying to do him in. But the 'knock' (bit more than that, really) to the head left him dizzy; faintly, he felt a sudden pain in his ankle. Didn't need any more of that…

_TELEPORT! GET OUT OF HERE! NOW, IDIOT! _

Teleport…

_Yes, teleport! Couldn't think to do that earlier, huh?!_

_Shut up…teleport…gotta teleport…the transporter… _Wasn't that in his…pocket? (**A/N**: Yes, let's all pretend he keeps the dimensional transporter-thing in his pockets…which I'm sure he now has. Okie?)

He managed to lift up a hand, and after a few tense seconds managed to locate his pocket. Fumblingly, he dug his hand through, closing it around something smooth and cool. Thank goodness…

Suddenly, he was jerked upward, hopefully Runo trying to save his life, and the card slipped out from between his fingers.

Crap.

Frantically, he scrambled to recapture it; it felt like he was waving his arms uselessly through an airborne sea of molasses. It fell through the space between his fingers, and down it fluttered, drifting away in a light breeze…and landing conveniently in the back of a truck, old, rusty and looking as though it would either fall apart or randomly combust any minute. Just his luck.

Strange how no one on the street could be bothered to look up and see him flailing around…a small blessing during this period of…_strife_. Didn't need any pictures of this popping up on the Internet…

"No…" His voice was weak and his mind clouded up with pain…the blood rushing to his head helped a lot.

Runo groaned, frustrated, as she gave his legs another tug. She'd managed to straighten herself up; now it was just a matter of actually getting the boy inside. How did she get herself in this situation…?

Right, she had had a brief moment of murderous intent. "Come on…" This was ridiculous. How was she supposed to drag someone up through a window by herself…?

"Runo?"

She nearly dropped him right then and there; her head snapped around, mouth dropping open when she saw Alice standing there, gawking. "What…what are you doing here?!"

"The mall," Alice said, bewildered as she stepped uncertainly into the room. "I came to check up on you, and…I heard a lot of noise…Runo, what…"

It didn't matter if she was here, if she found out about _him_. She just had to make sure she wasn't responsible for an actual _death_. "HELP! _NOW!_ RIGHT NOW!"

Alice blinked, stunned by the urgency in the blue-haired girl's voice. It occurred to her that _just_ perhaps Runo was serious, and she really did need help. She hurried, in, grabbing onto one of the legs hanging through the window as Runo shifted her grip over to the other. Her eyes widened when she took a peek down, to see exactly who it was she was helping to save.

"Masquerade?!"

A groan of pain confirmed her 'theory'.

"Long story," Runo snapped, face going red with the effort needed to keep her grip strong. "Just help me out here!"

There was a tense moment as Alice hesitated, a conflict of emotions flashing across her face, too quickly for Runo to understand what they meant. But it passed, and Alice was helping the blue-haired girl pull their enemy safely back inside.

He clutched the bands of his mask, screwing his eyes shut in agony as he slid down until he was seated safely on the floor. Being upside down for as long as he was, the many knocks to his head and the blood suddenly rushing back _out_ of his head…no body could handle such stress. Fuzzy black specks dotted his vision, rapidly growing and spreading until they had completely taken over, the sight of a two girls looking at him with panting, concerned faces fading away.

That was actually quite a nice sight to see just before blacking out…

Runo fell to her knees as the blonde boy's head slumped forwards, hands dropping to his sides and chest moving up and down with shallow breaths. "Oh my god…I actually nearly _killed_ him…oh my god…"

"Ru…Runo?" It was a surprise that Alice hadn't fallen too; those shaking knees looked about ready to fail her at any time. "What…why…Masquerade…why was he…?"

She was interrupted in her attempted interrogation as Runo suddenly jumped to her feet, looking more panicked than before, if that was possible. "Julie! She'll be here soon, won't she?!"

"Actually, she's already downstairs…Runo, you have to tell me…"

"No time! Can't let her…let her see _this!_ Can you imagine what she's gonna _think?!_"

Alice could actually imagine it quite well. "Well, what…?"

"I DON'T KN…wait! Idea!" Not the best idea, granted, especially when derived from the memory that it was from and who exactly it involved.

It was the first time Dan had ever visited her house, and when Runo had shown him her room. Of course he made stupid comments, he always did. But the one that had always irked her was the one he had made upon seeing her near-empty closet, save for the couple of dresses from special occasions that were now years past; '_Saving room for the bodies, huh?_'

She never really thought she would be gaining inspiration from something Dan had said…but it _could_ always work…you never know…

She was forced to jump into action as she heard footsteps, rather dainty, hurrying up the stairs, Julie's happy voice calling out to them. "Hey Alice, Runo! Are we gonna go or what?!"

"Distract her," Runo hissed, grabbing one of Masquerade's arms, pulling him towards the closet. He groaned softly and shifted around a bit, arm almost sliding out of her grip. But thankfully he stayed unconscious, and Runo was able to get him to the closet, just as Alice slipped out the door to confront the Australian.

"Oh, Julie! I thought you were going to stay downstairs…"

"Well, we don't wanna be late, do we?" Julie replied in a singsong voice as Runo frantically opened the closet door, swinging it open as fast as she could without it squeaking. "I mean, we could miss out on all the good shopping! And we don't want _that_, do we?"

"Well, uh…Runo isn't quite ready…"

Runo hurriedly shoved the body into the closet…god, this was like some scene out of a murder mystery movie, one of those flashbacks showing how the murderer got rid of the body, except there was no blood, shovels or wood chippers. He moaned again, shaking his head slightly as he slowly came to.

What else was she supposed to do? She was panicking, Julie could come in at any moment, see this and tell Dan about it, and Masquerade being awake probably wasn't going to help matters.

She gave him a good, hard bop on the head. "Stay asleep!" she whispered furiously, shutting the door. Clasping her hands together, she prayed that she hadn't been answered by a quiet, "_Ow…_"

"Aw, come on! I'm sure she's ready by now! I mean, _you_ were just in there…"

"Julie, really…!"

Runo quickly unclasped her hands and leaned against the door, trying to look 'natural' as Julie suddenly burst into the room, Alice just behind her, looking distraught. "Oh, hey Julie…"

The Australian girl stared at her, puzzled and blinking. "Runo, are you alright?"

"Of _course_ I am!" _Of course I'm not! You choose _now_ to be observant?!_ "Why?"

"It's just that…well…" Julie tilted her head to the side, frowning. "Your face looks kinda funny…ooh, are you _hiding_ something from me?"

_Since when had Julie gotten so good at reading people?!_ "Er…no, it's just…uh…I'm just not ready…"

"Well, I can see _that!_" Julie rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips. Alice hovered by her shoulders, nervous and looking at Runo questioningly. "You do know we're going to the _mall_, right? You gotta look good! Here, I'll help you choose out an outfit…" She started to move towards the closet, hand outstretched for the knob…

"NO!"

Julie paused as both Alice and Runo shouted at her, the bluette smacking her hand away. "Ok, have a _spaz_ much! What, you don't want my help?"

"No, it's not that," Alice said hurriedly, an edge of panic to her voice. Clearly she wasn't used to acting under such stress. "It's just that…uh…Runo doesn't really _have_ anything in her closet! Yeah…so there's no point looking in there…"

"Aw, come on, I'm sure there has to be _something_…"

"No, there's nothing," Runo said, guiding the silver-haired girl away from the closet. "Why don't we look through the drawers instead?"

"That's a great idea!" Alice chirped, already ahead of them. She pulled a drawer open and was rummaging through the clothes, pulling some stuff out for the other two to inspect. "Here, how about this blouse? I think it's really nice…"

"Why, it is!" Runo said brightly, hopping from foot to foot nervously as she did so. "What do you think, Ju…JULIE NO!"

Runo tried to grab her arm as Julie suddenly whipped around, lunging for the closet; her hands _just_ missed her, and Julie was wrenching open the door.

"AHA!" she crowed triumphantly. "SO THIS IS…oh…"

"…"

Time had come to a screeching halt as Julie looked down, dumbfounded, at the boy sitting on the floor, who was lifting his head up groggily. Awake then…and looking as though he were drunk or something…damn. Runo held her breath, her muscles frozen and keeping her from trying to do something about this…_situation_.

"…Awkward," Masquerade mumbled, his voice slow and heavy. How Runo wished she could throw something at him…something hard and heavy…that could put him out again…or maybe even kill him. That could really save her a lot of trouble, though it would have made saving his life completely useless.

If Tigrerra had a hand, she would have smacked herself in the forehead.

"…"

Finally, Julie turned around, staring at the other two girls blankly. Runo cringed, waiting for the sudden exclamations of shock and anger, demands to no what had happened. What she did say was actually much worse.

"…You guys were playing _Seven Minutes In Heaven_, weren't you?"

**A/N**: Throwing a person out a window…how romantic is _that?_ Yep…*pats self on head* I have a good sense of what romance is, don't I? ^.^ Damn, I love my Maskerado-kun so much…

I think I might have rushed it a bit…and I really sucked at the part where Maskerado-kun falls out the window and then is saved…just so you know, I'm not a doctor or some sorta medical-person…I don't know if people would faint after hitting their heads multiple times and then having blood rush to/out of their heads. I totally guessed. ^.^ I always guess.

Anywho, tell me whatcha think…yeah…make sure you've read _Math_ first, those of you who decided to confuzzle themselves and read this without prior knowledge…tell me the sucky parts and the good parts…yeah…okie…LATER LATER!


	2. What To Do, What To Do

**Chapter 2**

**A/N**: HUZZAH! ACTUAL REVIEWS! *pounces* Heh heh heh…I lurve you peoples. I really do. ^.^

**Anywho, I have an important question to you lovely reviewers and readers that has absolutely nothing to do with this fanfic, or any other fanfic. What I want to know is…**_**your stance on the death sentence**_**. We have to write an essay about it for Social Studies (GAH!), and I have absolutely no idea about whether I should support it or not. I mean…it's HARD!!! So…if it doesn't weird out or intimidate you peoples too much…perchance you can give me your opinion? Please? Just help me out a little? *puppy dog eyes* Okie…if you wanna, you can just PM me what you think…seeing as I can receive PM's now (YES! AHA!).**

**Disclaimer**: *sigh* Well…all I can say is…I do not own Bakugan. So…go mourn this, if you wish…in fact, I suggest that you mourn over this…why, I don't really know…

* * * * * * * * * * * *

There was definitely something wrong with his master, and it had quite a lot to do with that Brawler girl, he just _knew_ it. Really, how could Masquerade just _run off_ with plans to brawl her, and _completely_ forget to bring Hydranoid?

The Darkus Bakugan fumed as he glared at the spot where his master had previously been standing, furious to have been left behind…in the _computer room_ no less. How was Hydranoid supposed to get of here? _Wait_ for the boy to return? That would seem reasonable…but the fact that Masquerade didn't seem to have yet realized that he had forgotten something worried him.

His master wasn't _supposed_ to be like this. He was supposed to be calm, to think of everything, every angle, every possibility, every strategy. Even the slightest slip would worry Hydranoid; and lately, there have been a lot of slips. This was probably the worse by far, though.

But surely, no matter his master's…_psychological_ state, it should only have taken him at minute at _most_ to remember that he had forgotten something important, and come back. But Hydranoid had been sitting there, alone on the desk for at least ten minutes now (none too patiently, of course). Perhaps…the Brawler girl had _eaten_ him…

He knew there had to be something wrong with her.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Couldn't you two have had your secret affair _another_ day?" Julie complained, stretching out her legs. She and Alice sat next to each other on the cot, glowering at Runo, seated the bed across. "Apparently, there was really great sale going on today at the mall…"

Alice spared her an incredulous glance. "Er, Julie…we still have to get the story from Runo…perhaps we should worry about missing the mall later…"

"But it was a _really_ great sale!" the Australian griped, crossing her arms. "Like, a 75% mark down! And we're _totally_ missing it!"

"I wouldn't mind if you girls went to the mall…and moved the dresser away from this door while you were at it…"

"Shut it!" Runo barked, shooting a glare towards said dresser, now currently where the closet door should be. "You have the right to remain silent, creep! And that's your _only_ right!"

"I _am_ going through a case of head trauma, you know, among other such injuries." Masquerade's voice was just barely audible through the layers of wood that currently held him prisoner. "In light of this, it would be prudent for you to lower your voice and treat me kindly, especially since you seem keen to use American courtroom citation. In which case, I believe that I am entitled to a lawyer…"

"I said, _shut it!_ Or else!"

"Runo, you still have to explain this for us," Alice interrupted, wisely intervening before the bluette could lose what little patience she had left. "Can you please tell us why he was hanging out your window?"

Runo went red and quickly averted her eyes as she mumbled out the same lame excuse. "He _slipped_."

"She was trying to _kill_ me."

"You two need to have the same story," Alice said sternly, looking between her best friend and the dresser. "Otherwise…"

"You aren't going to believe _me?!_" Runo snapped, narrowing her eyes. "Are you actually considering that _he's_ telling the truth?!"

"That's because I _am_. Not all that shocking, to be honest. I believe you've exhibited murderous tendencies before?"

"He's, like, _right_ you know…"

"Julie, that doesn't help me!"

"It does help _me_, though. I would like to thank you for proving my point, Ms Julie. I'll be sure to call you up as a witness when we're all in court."

"Everyone! Can we please just stay on topic?!" Alice cried out desperately. "Runo, can you at least just tell us what he was doing here?! I thought you said you hadn't seen him since…well, the _incident_."

"…"

"…"

"Just when we get to the juicy bits, they both decide to shut up!" Julie whined, shoulders slumping in disappointment. "I mean, if I'm gonna miss the mall, it may as well be for some sort of nice _drama_…this could be, like, a soap or something! Two people, one good and the other a creep who's helping to destroy the world, falling in love and trying to deny it even though they're _obviously_ having an affair…"

She was forced to shut up when Runo threw a pillow at her with rather terrifying ferocity.

"It's not an _affair!_ It's not a drama, there's no 'falling in love' and _no_ denial…"

"She's actually _right_ for once! There's no _affair_ going on!"

Alice groaned, covering her face with her hands in exasperation. "I'm sorry everyone, but we _really_ have to try to get to the bottom of this! Runo, Masquerade, _why_ were you two meeting, if not for an…an _affair?_"

"…Well…" Runo looked up at the ceiling, frowning. There were only a few parts of their 'meeting' that she could recall clearly, parts that she sincerely wished she could forget. She struggled to remember everything that Masquerade had said to her… "I thi…he came here to _challenge_ me! He was trying to steal Tigrerra!"

"…Well…I suppose that works," Julie said with a shrug, once again looking disappointed. "Aw, and I was hoping for something a bit more _interesting_…"

"She pushed me out a window. Isn't that interesting enough for you?"

"So you pushed him out the window because he was threatening to send Tigrerra to the Doom Dimension?" Strangely enough, Alice looked…_relieved_. "I'll admit, Runo, that's a bit harsh…"

"But we can, like, understand," Julie piped up. "I mean, it is _you_ afterall."

"She nearly _kills_ me, and all you can say is that it's a _bit_ harsh?!" Any louder, and Masquerade's voice alone would have sent the dresser tumbling away. "That you _understand?!_ I could have a concussion! My ankle's _swollen_ because _she_ twisted it, and my back is all bruised up! Doesn't that warrant for something…I don't know, _more?!_"

Alice gasped, though not for the realization over the injustice done to the blonde boy. "Oh…Masquerade's in your _closet!_"

"…" Everyone stared at her, blank and confused.

"What are you talking about? I'm the bogeyman, didn't you know that?"

Suddenly, Julie's eyes widened when she realized what Alice was trying to get at. "Oh my god, he _is!_ And…and he's _injured!_"

"How are you _just_ realizing that?"

He was politely ignored.

"Runo, we have _Masquerade_, _injured_, in your _closet!_" Alice was suddenly wringing her hands together nervously, excitedly, guiltily. "Do you realize what this _means?_ We have him, _injured_, in your _closet!_ Your _closet!_"

"The repetition of the obvious is something that is little appreciated at the moment."

Once again he was ignored as Runo finally caught on, her hands flying to her mouth. "…He's in my _closet_…_injured_…_my_ closet…oh my god…"

"Thanks for demonstrating that you have the ability to connect your minds. Now, if you wouldn't mind…"

"Masquerade," Alice said slowly, voice filled with horror and shock, "you're our…our _prisoner_…"

"…Ah…I see…" Great. Now he felt pathetic. Naga wasn't going to like this…not at all…held prisoner by a small group of girls. Hydranoid was never allowed to find out about this.

"Oh my god, we have to tell Dan!" Julie jumped to her feet, looking excited. "We _totally_ have a chance against Naga now!"

"What do you mean?!" Alice stood up too, looking distraught. "We can't keep him here! It…it's _wrong!_ We have to let him go!"

"Where's he gonna go? He's injured."

"Well, we help him out, _then_ we let him go. It's morally _wrong_ to keep him prisoner…in a _closet_ of all places…"

"Well, I still say we should tell Dan and the others…"

"Nuh uh!" Runo finally stood up with her friends, eyes glinting in sour memory of her last conversation with the brunette. "Dan does not find out about this! And no one else either! I don't need more people thinking that I'm having a…a…a _you know what_ with _him!_"

"By _him_, I assume you mean _me?_ Just a guess, you know, because of the _way_ you said it…"

"Aw, they aren't gonna think that you're having an _affair_…I mean, just because that's what _we_ thought…" Julie's voice trailed off as she frowned, realizing just how accurate her words were. "Oh, never mind. Okay, I guess we won't tell them…but how do we keep the fact that we have him prisoner from the guys?"

"We don't," Alice said firmly. "We treat his injuries, then he can go. I already said this, it's immoral to keep him locked up in a closet…"

"But we can't just let him go back to _Naga_. That isn't gonna help us at all!"

"Hey!" Masquerade called out. "Mind if I give my input? It is, afterall, _my_ fate that's being decided…"

Runo cut across him. "Alice, Julie's actually _right_. Letting him go isn't gonna help Vestroia out at _all_…"

Alice closed her eyes, desperately trying to think up an alternative. Finally, she reopened them, sad and regretful. "Well…I suppose you're right…"

"But he is _not_ staying in my closet."

"Well, what are we going to do with him?" Julie asked, tapping a foot impatiently. Clearly, she saw this entire conversation as a waste of time; there were more important things to do…like shopping. "I mean, I'm staying at Marucho's and Alice is staying…well, here."

"Oh, don't worry about it," Masquerade said, voice scathing with impatience and frustration. "There's a trap door in here that'll take me into a magical land filled with happy fairies and unicorns. That should get me out of your hair."

Julie's eyes suddenly brightened up, glistening with happy surprise. "Oh my god, _really?_"

"…Julie, he's being sarcastic," Runo said bluntly, coolly crushing the Australian's dreams of going to magical lands.

"Perhaps I'm telling the truth. I doubt you've ever even been in here to see for yourself anyways."

"Can we please be serious about this?" Alice begged, sitting back down with her hands clasped hopefully. "This is an important matter. If we can't let him go free, and Runo doesn't want him in her closet…then what are we supposed to do?"

**A/N**: Ah, shorter chappie. Too bad…very too bad…well…I suppose…you now wait for next chappie…yeah…damn, I still need to think of actual ideas…the 'pushing out the window' thing was the oh so brilliant idea I got near the end of _Math_…and it has not really gotten me far…

And remember…I need your opinion on the death penalty…come oooooon…help me out here…


	3. Take Responsibility, Runo

**Chapter 3**

**Disclaimer**: Nope, I still don't own Bakugan. Perhaps in an alternate reality though…where Naga has taken over the world but ended up…having the Cores stolen from him…by some random 'psycho'…*shifty eyes*…

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"NO! NO, NO, NO, NO, _NO!_"

"Runo, there's no other way," Alice said tiredly as the bluette kicked the dresser furiously, now thankfully pushed away from the closet door. She continued to wrap the bandage, coarse and rough on her soft skin, around Masquerade's ankle as Julie fluttered behind her, watching Masquerade with interest while at the same time trying to avoid being swept up in Runo's rampages.

"Yes there is! I could push him out the window again!" Runo argued as she edged closer to the window, now closed. "Or we could…I dunno, stick him in the refrigerator! It doesn't matter, I just can't have him in my _closet!_ Don't you know how much that would…would…would _suck?!_"

"Because only God knows how terrible this experience would be for _you_," Masquerade said, voice rigid with cold as he glared at his throbbing ankle, obviously working hard to stop himself from wincing. "I mean, actually being the one forced to stay in a closet couldn't _compare_ to the stress you must be going through."

"Shut _up!_ You talk _way_ too much for someone who's just so supposedly '_injured_'!"

"Oh, so I get pushed out a window," Masquerade began, moving as though to stand up and confront her properly. Before Alice could stop him, he suddenly flinched and sat back down, shaking his head drunkenly. A bit more grudgingly, he finished what he was saying. "Out a _window_, I say, and you think that I managed to survive completely unharmed?"

"I didn't say _that_. I just think that you're making too big a deal out of this!"

Masquerade stared at her for a moment, before deciding that it was absolutely pointless to try and convince the bluette otherwise. "Ah, not so tight…"

"Sorry," Alice said hurriedly, now scrambling to finish up knotting the end of the bandage as painlessly as possible. Most unfortunately, her attempt was in bitter vain as Masquerade sucked in a breath, clenching his fists tighter together. "Sorry, sorry…I think I got this done. Just let me check your head."

"What?" Masquerade drew back the tiniest bit, distrustful.

"If you _really_ hurt your head as much as you say you did," Runo said, still fierce as she paced the room restlessly, "then she's gotta check to make sure that you didn't crack open your skull or anything. Unless you really _are_ just making a big deal out of this…"

He scowled, but surrendered, bowing his head and allowing Alice to inch closer as she looked the back over, flinching as her fingers brushed over. Runo and Julie watched her in silence, Julie still looking thrilled with all of these developments, Runo's face stormy and closed off.

"Can I…?" Alice tugged at the band of his mask gently. She shrieked and hastily backed up as his head suddenly shot up, hand flicking up and nearly hitting hers. It hit the wall instead with a sharp _crack_. "Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to…"

"Is that answer enough for you?!" Masquerade snarled as he brought his hand up to his chest defensively, practically flattening himself against the back wall. He looked almost like a trapped animal, wounded and furious. Ready to run at any moment. "Leave the mask be!"

"I…I'm so…so _sorry_," Alice babbled as she scuttled back helplessly, wringing her hands together helplessly. "I…I was just trying to…"

"She's just trying to _help_ you, you creep!" Runo planted herself firmly in front of Alice, squaring her shoulders and giving the masked boy the evil eye. "How's she supposed to see if you got hurt bad properly enough with that mask in the way?! You probably have a _concussion_ or something! That's what you were complaining about earlier, wasn't it?!"

He glared back at her, tense and silent.

"You know what, I'm just gonna go downstairs and help out my parents!" Runo spun around on her heel, grabbing Tigrerra as she stomped towards the door. "GOOD BYE!"

Alice, Julie and Masquerade all started simultaneously as the door was slammed shut, Masquerade still flinching as the doorframe shuddered with the impact, the pain in his head and back flaring up again.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"I can't _believe_ this!" Runo howled as she clambered down the stairs, practically suffocating poor Tigrerra as she tightened her fist. "This shouldn't be _happening!_"

"Runo, sweetie?" Mr Masaki stood at the bottom of the steps, concern and a touch of fear on his friendly features. Great, just what she needed, more people thinking she was possibly mental. "Are you okay? What's with all the yelling? Weren't you girls going to go to the mall or something?"

"It's cancelled," Runo snapped, shoving past him and stalking towards the kitchen. "I'm just gonna work now!"

"Sweetie, the restaurant's _closed_ on Sundays…"

Runo faltered, standing still for the moment it took her to process this information. "…Right…well then…I'm just gonna go for a walk, okay?!"

"Er…" Flustered, he looked around, as though desperately hoping that the answer to his beloved daughter's sudden fury would just suddenly materialize out of midair. One would think that he'd be used to these tantrums by now. "Well, I suppose that's okay…"

She was already out the door, without a single farewell other than a grabbing her jacket off the coat hanger and a slammed door. Great; it wouldn't be long until he was forced to replace it again…

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Can you believe this?!" Runo viciously kicked at a small rock in front of her, sending it flying. A bird, pecking at the scraps of a forgotten sandwich on the street, cawed in surprise, fluttering upwards to avoid being nailed. "This shouldn't be _happening!_ I mean, we can't keep _Masquerade_ in my _closet!_"

"Well, milady…"

Runo didn't give poor Tigrerra a chance to finish talking as she continued to rave. "He's our _enemy!_ We can't go around keeping them in our _closets_…"

"Milady, if you weren't so opposed to…"

"What if he gets out somehow? I mean…he gets out, and does…I dunno, _something_ bad! Like…he goes peeking through my dresser! Or…graffiti's the wall! Or maybe…" She suddenly stopped where she was, her eyes widening as a particularly…_graphic_ thought came to mind, causing her lips to tingle unpleasantly in remembrance. "Oh my god! I don't want him anywhere _near_ me!"

"Runo…"

"You support me, right Tig?" Runo turned to the Haos Bakugan, perched precariously on her shoulder, hunched in her jacket as the cold began to set, green eyes pleading for an ally. "We need to find somewhere else to dump him…like a vat of _acid_…or a furnace…"

"Runo, you have to take _responsibility_!"

The outburst slipped out before Tigrerra had a chance to even think about it; she found herself regretting as, apprehensively, she watched the begging on her mistress' face turn into disbelieving shock. When a reply finally came, it was dull with confusion. "…What?"

"Well…milady…" Tigrerra coughed softly in her anxiousness, all too aware of the two eyes boring holes into her. One must thank whatever divine being that ruled the universe for not giving Runo laser vision. "You see…you brought this upon yourself. _You_ were the one that pushed him out the window…"

"Because he…he _kissed_ me!" That anger was finally creeping back as it dawned on the bluette to be indignant. "You saw it! You were the one telling me to do something about it, not to let him get away with it…"

"Milady, I didn't think you'd take it so _far!_ And Runo, that isn't even the end of it! We can't very well take him anywhere else, there _is_ no one else, nowhere that we can take him that won't alert Dan and the others! _You're_ the one who doesn't want them to know about this…"

"I don't want them to find out about _this!_ It was bad enough when Dan and Alice walked in on the…_accident_. I think they still don't trust me after that…"

_"Oh, sure! And you didn't mean to kiss him, either! I bet you were the one passing him along all that information!"_

It still hurt, to know that Dan would think such a thing…

"Well, Runo, there's no other choice. It's not like he can even be taken anywhere with his injuries. I'm afraid…" Tigrerra paused for a moment as the image of a certain Darkus Bakugan popped into her head, gloating about how he had been right all along, that Runo really was…no, she had to forget about that. Petty pride…there was nothing for it. "That he'll have to stay with us."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"I'd rather _actual_ medical care," Masquerade grumbled as his arm began to fall asleep, becoming numb from the prolonged contact with the cold little package in his hand. Not like it helped much anyways, not with the band of his mask in the way…a small thought tugged at the corner of his mind, begging for him to see the reason in it. Taking off the mask would certainly make things simpler for himself, it would hurt less…hell no.

Alice sighed, calmly pushing her frustration out of the way as she gently pressed an icepack against his ankle. "I'm sorry Masquerade, I'm doing the best I can…"

"She really is," Julie piped up, lounging on Alice's cot and flipping lazily through some random book. She just needed something to do; staring at Masquerade with a bemused, contemplative expression, though somehow entertaining, wasn't going to satisfy her restlessness. "I think she's doing a good job."

"An icepack and a couple of badly-wrapped bandages," he muttered, a sullen, sarcastic sneer lacing his voice. "_Hardly_ top quality care, a _five_ year old could do better. At least _they'd_ remember to give me a kiss to feel better…"

"Like any of us would willingly give you one, _creep_."

"Oh, Runo! You're back!" Julie tossed the book aside, sitting up straighter with a strange sparkle in her eye. She looked eagerly between the bluette and the blonde; it was as though her favourite TV show had just come back on after some semi-interesting commercials. "Wow, you weren't gone for very long, were you?"

"It was getting cold," Runo replied in a mumble, sitting down on her bed with a huff, digging through her jacket pocket as she began to shrug it off. Tigrerra rolled down on top of the blanket, watching her mistress with silent approval. "Just needed to…cool off…"

"You so sure?"

Runo paused, glaring at who she considered to be an outspoken blonde. "About what? It getting cold out? If you want, we can hang you out the window again so you can check for yourself…"

"So sure that no one would want to willingly kiss me." Masquerade leaned forward, subconsciously shoving Alice aside as he set down his icepack. Runo shifted uncomfortably under his suddenly intense gaze.

"Yes, I am! _None_ of us would want to kiss a creep like _you!_"

He cocked his head, continuing to stare at Runo with a small frown. Alice and Julie shared a befuddled glance, worried on Alice's part. Suddenly, his lips curved up into a small smirk. "I can think of someone who might…"

Runo looked blank for a moment. Suddenly, Julie's stares were just as intense as Masquerade's her grin identical to his as a deep blush covered the other girl's face in angry splotches.

"You…you know what, you're just a creep! A stupid, perverted _creep!_ And you know what else?!"

"I'm a creep?" Masquerade finished, sounding as though he were bored of this conversation…creep.

Runo didn't have time to think of a retort scathing enough to satisfy just how angry she was with him as Julie suddenly burst out laughing, clapping her hands together. "Oh, this is great! _Great!_"

"What're you talking about?!" Runo turned on the Australian, hands itching to grab that head of silver hair and beat it against the wall. "What the hell is so great?! _Nothing_ about this is great!"

Alice gave Julie a warning look, blinking rapidly in attempted Morse code in case she couldn't understand the meaning of 'warning looks'. Julie seemed to catch it alright; it still took a few moments for the giggling to subside into a few giddy chuckles. "Aw, Runo, just look on the _bright_ side of this."

Flabbergasted and insulted. That's how Runo looked right now. "_What_ bright side?!"

Masquerade opened his mouth, ready to deliver a cynical comment, then closed it again. Perhaps mentioning that the bright side was getting to torture him was something best kept to himself…

"Just a bright side," Julie said, her voice a high, happy trill that made Runo want to throttle her. "It's no big deal…"

Runo pointed viciously at Masquerade, still glowering at the silver-haired girl. "I _have_ made it clear that there's nothing between me and _him_, right? You do know he's just being a creep who says creepy stuff, right?"

"Yeah yeah." Julie waved it off, a small, pleased smile still dancing around her lips. "I know, I know. You hate him, it's just by unfortunate coincidence that is seems like you two like each other, blah blah blah, that same old story."

She couldn't think of anything else to say to that, to make the truth any clearer, that wouldn't end up blowing out everyone's eardrums. Instead, she resorted to a harmless scowl, jamming her hand into her jacket pocket and back out, throwing something small and white at Masquerade. He didn't have enough time to duck, could only jump back as it bounced off the glass mask, falling to the floor with a loud clatter. Masquerade stared down at it, dubious.

"Sorry, I'm not interested in doing drugs."

"Idiot," Runo growled, bending down and forcibly shoving the container into his hand hastily. She didn't waste time in getting back up and taking a few steps away. "Tylenol. Some stupid pain reliever stuff, figured it might get you to shut up."

"…Ah. I see." Masquerade stared at it, slowly turning it over in his hand. Carefully, he unscrewed the top, sniffing it suspiciously. "Just what kind of poison did you put in it, and how much."

"OH MY GOD!" Runo threw up her hands as she stalked back out of the room. "YOU'RE IMPOSSIBLE!"

"I could say the same thing about you," Masquerade called out, shaking the Tylenol container absentmindedly, making sure none of the pills fell to the floor. "I'm pretty sure I also need a glass of water with these!"

"I'll get one for you," Alice said as she stood up hurriedly, twisting her hands together nervously. "Julie, you should probably get back to Marucho's…"

"Oh, yeah, sure." With an elaborate, bored yawn, Julie clambered off the bed. She stepped forward, nudging Masquerade with her foot. "OK, you, get back in you closet. Don't want you climbing out the window to escape or anything…"

"Do you really think that I'd try to climb out a window after _that?_" Masquerade drew back, trying to avoid Julie's foot. "Hey, stop that…"

"Not until you get back in!" Strange how someone so…_preppy_ while forcing a person into captivity.

"What is this, a prison? I have rights, you can't treat me this way…"

"Don't care!" Julie chirruped, finally just stooping down and propelling him inside, shutting the door before he could retaliate or protest. His hand reached and grasped the knob, ready to twist it. He stopped; a loud, scraping noise just outside. Great…just _great_…he personally found the dresser rather unnecessary.

…And now he was all alone in a dark closet…even _better_…

He groaned again as he leaned his head uncomfortably against the wall as a shock of discomfort raced up his spine and into the base of his neck, gripping the little bottle in his hand tight. As much as he found himself distrusting it, it couldn't hurt to take one…no, he should wait for some water, didn't want to choke on it…

Another flash of pain. Screw that, he wasn't going to wait for some water. With something akin to ferocity, he jammed a few fingers into the container; with some struggle, he managed to wriggle to small, white pills out. Without any sort of dawdling, he dipped his head back and tossed the pills down his throat. He took a deep gulp; how uncomfortable it was, how he wanted to just cough them out…

He swallowed again, and down they slipped. Ugh, _disgusting_…should have waited for water…


	4. Julie's Devious Plot

**Chapter 4**

**CloneGirl**: MaskerADO-kun! Whatcha think? Sayeth the disclaimer and I'll give you a sparkly picture?

**Masquerade**: …I'm locked in a _closet_…what good will a sparkly picture do me?

**CloneGirl**: …Iiiiiiit's…pretty to look at! Come on…come on…come on…come ooooooooon…you should know by now that it's basically pointless to argue with me when it comes to saying the disclaimer…

**Masquerade**: …Ugh…I hate you…so much…whatever, CloneGirl doesn't own any rights to Bakugan.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Ah, Julie!" Marucho turned his head, smiling pleasantly as Julie skipped into the living room. His short little legs swung from their elevated spot on the couch. "I must say, I'm rather surprised that you're back so early. Did the shopping trip go well?"

"We didn't go," Julie answered, shrugging carelessly. Marucho blinked in surprise; he considered perhaps getting an ear appointment, because for some reason, she wasn't…disappointed? "We ended up just hanging at Runo's house, talking about…stuff…"

"What…kind of stuff?" Obviously something important enough be revered more than a shopping trip for Julie…

"Oh, you know…girl stuff…our changing bod…"

The half-finished sentence was more than enough to take away the blonde child's curiosity. "Oh, that's great," Marucho interrupted hurriedly, blushing deeply. It was just wiser to let the matter drop. "Er…well, I guess it's too bad that you missed shopping…"

"Ah, not _too_ bad." Julie grinned, a small and mischievous expression upon her beaming face, quickly accompanied by a giggle. "_One_ thing good came from it…hey, where's Gorem? I need to talk to him…"

Giving her an odd look, Marucho pointed before him at the small spectacle that Julie had somehow missed upon entrance.

"No, not _O_, you idiot! You push _X_ to jump! I swear, you're gonna get us _killed!_"

"I'm sorry, Preyus…"

"Sorry's are _not_ enough! Quick, quick, push _O!_"

"I thought…"

"_X_ is for jumping, _O_ is to shoot! SO SHOOT, DARN IT, SHOOT! THAT ALIEN'S NOT GONNA HANG AROUND IN THAT SPOT FOREVER!"

Julie nearly broke down in laughter right then and there as she watched her poor Bakugan try to hop to the intended button, only to lose his balance and tumble off the game controller. Preyus continued to scream orders at him while he himself struggled to direct the joystick to the right.

"Aw, Gorem! You distracted me!"

"Again, I'm very sorry…"

Before Preyus could revoke this apology, the T.V. went bright red, two big black words fading in a few seconds later. They were accompanied by a cold, mechanical voice, impersonal to the Aquos Bakugan's protests. "_Game…over…game…over…game…_"

"That isn't _fair!_" Preyus objected, hopping up and down in indignation as the T.V droned on. "It's not _our_ fault neither of us have opposable thumbs! I'm _totally_ going to call the company that manufactured these _useless_ controllers and file a complaint!"

"Have fun with that, Preyus…"

"Ooh, _Gorem!_" Julie dashed into the room, skirting around the table to avoid crashing into it. Her hands managed to fly over the surface as she did so, trapping the Bakugan in her cupped hands. She spun around, raising up high and giggling. "I have, like, the _best_ news!"

"Really? What kind of new…" Julie didn't wait around to answer Marucho's incomplete question; she was already hurrying out the door, squealing. Marucho shook his head; he could never understand girls…

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"What has gotten you so excited, Julie?" Gorem asked, voice low and confused as the Australian gently set him down on one of her pillows.

"Dan is totally going to be _mine!_"

"…" If he had the eyes, Gorem would have chosen that moment to blink. "Er…exactly _how_…?"

"_Masquerade's locked in Runo's closet! They so totally like each other!_ RUNO'S GONNA GIVE UP ON DAN FOR MASQUERADE!"

"…What?"

"Long story," Julie said impatiently as she hopped onto the bed, picking up another pillow and hugging it tightly. "Masquerade wanted to steal Tigrerra or something, Runo pushed him out her window, he's now our captive, blah blah blah. What matters is that they _like each other_."

"…I thought that was _bad_…"

"Only if Masquerade's with Naga and can…I dunno, pass along info or something. But he's _not_ with Naga. He's in Runo's _closet_. And he'll totally betray Naga out of his love for Runo, Runo won't crush on Dan anymore, AND HE'LL BE ALL MINE! I mean, isn't this just so _perfect?_ It's like taking out two birds with one stone or something!"

"…That's good…I guess…if it helps to stop Naga…"

"It's more than just _good_, Gorem!" Julie glared at the Bakugan patronizingly for his poor choice of wording. "This is _brilliant!_ Oh, you should've _seen_ the two of them! They're just so _cute_ together…"

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"I want a pillow."

"Too bad."

"I _need_ a pillow."

"Suck it up."

"I need a blanket too."

"SHUT UP!" Runo shot up to a sitting position, grabbing her lamp as she went and raising her arm, murder in her eyes as she directed it towards the closet door.

"Runo!" Alice untangled herself from her sheets, hurrying across the room to grab the bluette's wrist, just in time. "You can't just throw stuff! All he's asking for is a pillow and a blanket, that isn't asking too much…"

"I'd also like to be given a chance to escape, if it doesn't trouble you too much."

"That _is_ asking too much," Runo snarled, but sullenly set the lamp back down with a sigh. "Fine, I'll go grab…"

"No, let me get them," Alice interrupted instinctually, before she realized exactly _why_ she shouldn't be saying that. "Er…I mean, if you want to…I doubt you want to be alo…" But Runo was already settling back comfortably into her bed and staring at the redhead, eyebrows raised in questioning. "…I'll go get them. Don't…attack him or anything."

"What, you're going to leave me alone in a room with _her?_" Masquerade called out, almost desperately as he heard Alice shuffle out the door, reluctant to be leaving them alone. His voice slowly grew more panicked as another set of footsteps sounded, hurrying to the door that now seemed more like a flimsy protection than a way blocked. "Don't you think that's a bad idea? Alice?! Don't leave me alone with her! _She's gonna kill me! All I wanted was a blanket and a pillow!_"

The door slowly creaked open, bumping against his knee as he looked up, finding himself in the shadow of a fuming blue-haired girl. _Oh damn…recover…recover…don't show fear, she'll just feed off of it…_

"You," she growled, slowly pointing a finger at him. "_Stop…being…annoying._"

_Will do, ma'am. No worries, I'll just shut right on up and save myself the trouble of reattaching my limbs. _Great…all of a sudden he was a _wimp_. He couldn't let this go on.

Mustering up a small smirk, he shook his head. "Ah, but my dear, your reaction is just so…should I say _fulfilling? _ Really, you should just learn to be more calm…does good for you in the long run, I hear." That was good, better than the 'will do, ma'am'. Sarcastic, unworried…perhaps his pride could still be salvaged.

"Milady!" Tigrerra cried out when Runo raised her foot, preparing to send it flying into the blonde's chin. "_Violence is not the answer!_"

"No truer words have been spoken," Masquerade agreed as Runo hesitated. Hesitation was also good; it was chance for him to take control of the situation. "Violence was what got us into this little predicament, remember?"

Runo snarled at him, but lowered her foot, looking regretful. He had no doubt that she would have enjoyed kicking him around like a hacky-sack. "Shut up. It was your _own_ fault, coming in here like that and…"

"I wasn't going to take your precious Tigrerra," Masquerade reminded her, still smirking. "Perhaps at first, but I changed my mind…hard not to when you agree that I'm a superior brawler to Dan…"

"That had nothing to do with it! You _know_ why I pushed you out that window!"

Masquerade cocked his head to the side, considering her silently, his smirk lingering. A small, almost unnoticeable buzz ran over his skin, reminding him about how…_nice_ it had been. Until she had actually reacted to _it_, of course. "I know that," he said softly. "I just thought I'd try to be thoughtful and pretend it never happened…though I'm starting get the feeling that maybe you're _happy_ it happened…"

Runo narrowed her eyes, taking an unconscious step back. "Why the hell would you think that? I thought I made it pretty clear that I _wasn't_ happy…"

"You're blushing."

She stared at him in shock, before shakily raising a hand and gently touching her cheek…now warm with the extra blood rushing under it. "You…you _creep…!_"

"Runo! I told you not to attack him!"

Runo whipped her head around, an elevated foot still as she sheepishly shrugged towards Alice, who stood in the doorway in disappointment, a thick brown blanket bundled in her arms with a pillow, fluffy and white, balanced on top. "I wasn't going to…besides, he's basically _asking_ for it…"

"Alice, Runo was about to attack me for no reason!" Masquerade interjected, a playful grin on his face. It was clear that his earlier 'fright' was well gone. "She shouldn't be allowed any more cookies at snack time!"

"Stuff it, you sarcastic little weas…"

"_Runo._"

"Yeah yeah, sorry Alice…"

With a tired sigh, Alice entered the room, gently setting the blanket and pillow beside Masquerade before rubbing her eyes. "Okay, if we have that settled…we're going to have to watch Masquerade during the night, can't risk…"

"Dammit," Masquerade muttered under his breath. Clearly, he had other plans for how he was going to spend his night. Alice continued on wearily.

"…Him going unconscious in the middle of the night. That is, if he for _sure_ has a concussion."

"What?!" Runo crossed her arms, sticking out her bottom lip. "But I have school tomorrow! Even worse, I have Math…class…" Her eyes widened, slowly drifting over to the bedside table, and the discarded binder, papers and pencil that lay forgotten next to Tigrerra's dollhouse. "CRAP! I DIDN'T GET MY HOMEWORK DONE!"

A satisfied chuckle escaped Masquerade. He put a hand over his mouth to cover this as Runo's hands flew up to her head, tugging at her pigtails it in exasperation. "Ah yes, I recall you doing something about congruent triangles? Not that difficult, I'm sure you could get them done."

"This is all _your_ fault."

"Everything seems to be, doesn't it? Perhaps you shouldn't have been wasting your time trying to commit murder and overreacting about every little thing, and instead have focused on your school work."

Alice quickly interrupted the argument before it could get too far. "Runo, you really should have gotten it done…do you think you could get it done tonight, without your parents realizing…?"

"…Maybe…if I'm really quiet…and suddenly come up with some form of nightvision…"

"…"

* * * * * * * * * * * *

As one might have already known, suddenly developing nightvision was something nigh near impossible. But she persevered anyways, squinting at her paper, viewable thanks only to the scant moonlight that managed to shine through the window. Out of all the other nights there could have been for it to be cloudy, it just _had_ to be tonight, didn't it? But there was no way she was going to risk turning on the lights, even with her parents loud, guttural snores from the room down the hall assuring her that they were indeed sleeping.

It shouldn't be taking this long to finish up a few measly, simple questions on congruency; apparently, Folman was too busy thinking about a hot date that night to assign more homework. But in between yelling at Masquerade for his occasional comment, trying to convince Alice that duct tape was a good solution and then glaring at the redhead when she finally fell asleep, not a lot of work had gotten done.

_He_ was still awake. She could sense his gaze on her, unwavering and curious. She pursed her lips together, both to cover up a yawn and to stop herself from yelling at him. As much as she resented her at the moment, Runo didn't have the heart to accidentally wake Alice up. And so it had been surprisingly silent, aside from Alice's soft breaths and the _scritches_ of Runo's pencil against the paper.

Painstakingly, she dragged her hand across the paper yet another time, closing up a triangle; just this last question, and then she was free to drop dead all she wished. A vague thought entered her mind as she once again struggled to remember the stupid theorems; wasn't it about time she closed that closet? It probably wasn't very smart, leaving it open like that…she was pretty sure that him escaping was a bad thing…she couldn't recall why, though…

Right, they didn't want him to go back and help Naga…but that seemed like such a small price to pay, for getting him out of her hair…no, Runo, think about Vestroia, about Tigrerra and the other Bakugan…but even the thought of just turning her head to look at the damned door was exhausting. And it wasn't like he could get very far on that ankle…

Damn it, she didn't want to stare at the paper any more. Besides, she now wanted to know the time. She turned her head slightly, before dropping her chin to her hand; she'd been right about how turning her head would be exhausting. She opted instead to look at it from the corner of her eye. A bit blurry, perhaps, but she could get the gist of what the glowing blue numbers said, and looked like it was about three o'clock…

She _really_ needed to learn how to be less argumentative.

Screw this damned question, Folman probably wouldn't even check it all that closely anyways. She shifted her head back to the paper and quickly scribbled down something just barely legible. Praying that it would be enough and didn't look _completely_ like some pathetic attempt to finish her homework worthy to be accused of cheating, Runo dropped her head into the crook of her arm.

Masquerade continued to watch her for a few minutes, waiting until he was completely sure she was asleep. With a sigh, he unscrewed his Tylenol bottle and got out a single pill. He pulled a face as it slid down his throat; it was still just as revolting as before. But his head had been pounding for the last few hours, helped along by Runo's near constant snaps.

With a hiss of pain, he grabbed onto the knob of the door and pulled himself to his feet, careful to keep his injured ankle a few centimeters above the floor. With strenuous care, he jumped forward a bit; the small _thump_ that resulted did nothing to stir the girls. With a relieved sigh, he continued to hop forward, fingers quivering as they trailed the wall, ready to be balanced on.

His journey found itself halted; for some reason, he turned his head back to Runo's slightly-moving form, frowning. The arm that wasn't substituting as a pillow was stretched over the binder, right on top of the rings. No way that could be comfortable…

He stared at her for a bit longer, then let out an irritated sigh. He _should_ be escaping, but really, what was the point? And he couldn't…no, he didn't _want_ to just leave her in that uncomfortable position. It would completely ruin the 'nice guy' image that he had been trying to build some days ago, before the whole dancing mess…granted, he doubted that he had ever really fooled the bluette into believing that crap.

Before he could change his mind, he limped heavily towards the sleeping girl. _I must have gone crazy_, he thought disgustedly as he stared down at her, shaking his head to himself. Nevertheless, he bent down and gently extracted her binder from under her limp arm and tugged her pencil out of her tightly clenched fist, setting them down on the bedstand.

But something still wasn't right. Her head was _beside_ the pillow, a leg dangled down the side, her blanket was bunched up around her feet…at least she already had her pajama's on.

He reached out towards her without thinking, drawing her arm out from under her head and slipping his hand under, catching it before it could fall. He guiding it to her pillow before laying her down. His hands hesitated as they withdrew, before grabbing the crook of her knee and hoisting it up on the bed. He leaned his good leg against the edge of the bed as his hands slid around her waist and her shoulders; with a grunt, he carefully rolled her over on her back.

He suddenly went still, hands still trapped around her as she frowned, shaking her head a bit in her sleep. But the moment passed, and she was still asleep as he wiggled his hands out from under her. With quiet care, he reached down and snatched the hem of her blanket, dragging it up over her.

Stepping back with a satisfied smile, he observed her for a few minutes. There, that looked a lot better…

"That was awfully nice of you, Masquerade."

His head snapped around at the stiff, yet inquisitive voice, coming from the dollhouse. "Don't you remember? I'm a nice guy. It's what I do."

Tigrerra snorted, but other than that did not doubt his words. "I'm rather surprised with you. I figured you'd take this chance to escape us."

"Well, as appealing as the thought of hiking back to Europe on a busted ankle is…I decided that this was more worth it. So many ways to aggravate you all…how could I pass up this chance?"

If Tigrerra's answering chuckle puzzled Masquerade, he didn't show it. He simply just continued to speak.

"Now, if _anyone_ should be surprised, it should be me. I thought that you'd be yelling and screaming at me, perhaps try to tackle me like earlier."

Tigrerra would have shrugged if she had the shoulders to do so. "You aren't doing any harm, just…helping her achieve a better sleep. Besides, I wouldn't want to wake up Runo and Alice."

A wry grin curled the corner of his mouth. How strange, for Tigrerra to be so…_cordial_ to him. Just as it was strange for Hydranoid to be nosy and annoying. "Well, if you say so…"

**A/N**: Whew. *slumps* That took me a long time to write…band trips, work, studying for my upcoming PAT's…I truly loathe the last two months of the school work…


	5. Morning Stress

**Chapter Five**

**A/N**: Heh…glad to see this fic is getting such positive reception. ^.^ It's because I'm ridiculously skilled, isn't it? Yeah…I know it…single greatest being in the universe, right here…by the way, Kenz, if you're reading it…I KNOW YOU ARE MENTALLY MOCKING MEEEEEEEEE!!!

**Disclaimer**: Yeah…I don't own Bakugan…if I did…well…nah, I don't wanna own it…I just wanna own Maskerado-kun…*shifty eyes*

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"GRAAAAH! HAL-G, WHAT IS THIS?! WHAT IS…AAAAAARGH!"

The scientist cowered backwards, terrified even from his safe position away from the screaming Bakugan, repeatedly bowing his head so that he wouldn't have to helplessly watch his master writhe in pain. Flashes of purple danced in front of his eyes each time his head bobbed back up as the Silent Core shuddered, the very edges of the outside of it wavering dangerously.

"HAL-G! TELL ME WHAT IS GOING _ON!_"

He stumbled backwards with the force of the deep-toned roar, cloak flying back like a pair of bat wings. "The negative energy," Hal-G began desperately, both hands holding tightly onto his staff, "there isn't enough of it to keep the Core stabilized…"

"WELL, WHERE IS IT ALL _GOING?!_" The furious question was followed by a choked cry of pain, and Hal-G could see the dark shape that was twisting inside the shimmering Core convulse.

"It's not that it's _going_ anywhere," he said hurriedly, "it's just that…when Masquerade sends Bakugan to the Doom Dimension, it would cause a discharge of negative energy generated by the wormhole, which would instantly be drawn towards the Silent Core, assisting in its stabilization…that is why that is his job, remember…?"

"THEN WHAT IS MASQUERADE _DOING?!_ WHY HASN'T HE BEEN SENDING THE DAMNED BAKUGAN TO THE DOOM DIMENSION?!"

Hal-G hesitated, unconsciously shuffling backwards. "I…I do not, he seems to have…" He didn't even have to finish his sentence; there could be only one thing keeping Masquerade from his duties. He had to be missing.

"FIND HIM! FIND HIM, FIND HIM, FIND HIIIIIIIIIM!"

"Ri…right away, Master," Hal-G stuttered, quickly stepping back into the rectangle of light that had sprung up behind him, Naga's last howl still reverberating in his ears.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Hydranoid was silent as he watched Hal-G step through the portal that had shimmered into existence at the edge of the platform, ruffled and anxious. It was about _time_ someone had come around to rescue the abandoned Bakugan. "Doctor…"

Hal-G stabbed his staff in Hydranoid's direction, teeth bared back in a frantic grimace. "You!" he shrieked, waving the baton threateningly, "I _know_ you know where he is! Masquerade! What happened to him?! Lord Naga, he needs Masquerade to be sending Bakugan to the Doom Dimension! _Tell me what you know!_"

If he had a heart inside his little toy of a body, it would have skipped; here was a chance to bust his wayward master, Hal-G would set him straight, get rid of any poisonous thoughts that might be in the boy's head, those thoughts that he knew revolved around that horrendous _Brawler girl_…

_What kind of…certain people?_

Hydranoid suddenly hesitated, confused. The memory of Masquerade glaring at him, arms crossed and mouth turned down in a frown…and tensing up almost anxiously as he waited for Hydranoid to tell him who Runo had been dreaming of. Where did _that_ come from? It had nothing to do with the situation at hand, something so terribly trivial…

"I'm sorry," Hydranoid said stiffly. "I…do not know."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

A sudden loud, obnoxious string of beeps forced Runo's eyes to burst open and her head to jerk back, away from the alarm clock that was screaming at her to wake up. With a groan, she tried to bury her head back into her pillow, but that did little to block out the squawks. Finally, with a frustrated growl, she flung her hand out and slapped some buttons on the small device; after a few minutes of fumbling, the clock finally fell silent, and she could hear Alice on the other side of the room murmuring and shifting in her sheets, slowly waking up.

With a heavy yawn, Runo raised her head and blinked wearily at the glowing red numbers on her clock; 7:30, right on the dot. Dammit. School…her homework…oh damn, her homework, what happened to it…

Her eyes somehow drifted over the rest of the table, landing on the binder, textbook and pencil neatly stacked. Weird…she didn't remember anything about putting them there…

"_No!_"

Her head whipped towards the strangled cry, to catch sight of Alice staring at the wall adjacent to them, wide eyed and hands flying up to her mouth. Runo turned her head to look at where Alice was staring, groaning.

The blanket and pillow that Alice had so thoughtfully brought up the night before were strewn across the floor, a messy tangle that had been carelessly left there. The pillow sat a few feet from her bed, rumpled and forlorn. Meanwhile, the closet door was wide open and still, revealing its meager contents…none of which included a certain blonde, masked boy.

"No…" Alice moaned as she cast off her own blankets and hurried towards the open door, hand clasping the side and peering inside desperately, as though he may be hidden within the shallow shadows of the corners. "He…he escaped, we forgot to close the door…he couldn't go far with those injuries, but still, he could be hurt…or he could be back with Naga…"

Runo felt her heart sink as she herself pushed away her blankets, guilty eyes drawn towards the closet. _Dammit, this is all my fault…I knew I should have closed that door, locked it…I'm such an idiot…Alice is right, he could be hurt even more…_ Her thoughts grew more and more panicked as she set a foot down on the floor, overactive visions of a slim, still body lying abandoned in an empty, stinking alleyway, white jacket dingy with grime and garbage and blonde streaked with red from his head injury, rats flitting out of dark corners to nibble through the fabric protecting his toes flashing through her imagination. _And it'll be all my fault…oh god, I might've gotten him killed…Masquerade, no…_

Her thoughts found themselves kicked into an even further overdrive as something suddenly grabbed her ankle, gripping it tightly; a weeping, blue haired girl was standing over the body, weeping bitterly when a grotesque hand, smooth and hooked, darted out from under a dumpster, grabbing her leg and yanking her under…

She couldn't help but scream as the hand grasping her ankle did just that, pulling her foot out from under her; that scream, mingled with a yelp from Alice, grew louder when she caught sight of the hand, not tallied as she had imagined, but a blur of red, black and white. That was all she managed to distinguish, though, before she found her face hurtling towards the pillow. Runo closed her eyes instinctively as she slammed into the ground, the impact jarring despite the cushioning beneath her.

"Runo!" She felt two soft hands grab her forearm, shaking it slightly. "Runo, are you okay?! Masquerade…you had us scared to _death!_"

She could have sworn her heart stopped beating when the hand on her ankle disappeared, replaced by some rustling and grunts as someone wiggled out from under her bed, his arm accidentally brushing against her leg as he dragged himself out. "I thought it was rather funny," she heard _his_ smug voice say, growing closer to her ear as he finally pulled himself out. "Differing opinions, I suppose."

"_YOU!_" Runo propped herself up onto her knees, twisting her head around and scuttling backwards when she saw his smirking face, just a few inches from her. She aimed her accusing finger at him, shaking. "Wha…you…WHAT WERE YOU DOING UNDER THERE?!"

"Waiting for you to wake up, of course," he said coolly, scooting backwards to lean against the bed and smirk at her, one hand reaching out to gently rub his bandaged ankle. "And I must say, uncomfortable as it was, it was _quite_ satisfactory."

"YOU CREEP!" Alice had to tighten her grip as Runo tried to lunge forward; her free hand whipped out, just barely missing the tip of his nose. He didn't flinch, only chuckled as Alice grabbed that arm too, forcing Runo into a half nelson. "I HATE YOU! WHAT ARE YOU, A FIVE YEAR OLD?!"

Masquerade just shrugged carelessly as Alice dragged Runo away, kicking and screaming.

"YOU ARE _SO_ IMMATURE! YOU'RE JUST LIKE _DAN!_"

The blonde suddenly tensed, every muscle in his body stiffening as Runo panted hard, still struggling against Alice's hold. "Well then, in that case, _I'm sorry_," he said coldly, turning his head away slightly. "Didn't realize I was stooping down to the levels of _scum_."

Alice's eyes widened, but Masquerade's 'apology' simply went straight over the bluette's head. Runo took advantage of Alice's momentary shock to shake her off and jump to her feet. Though instead of using this freedom to attack, she spun around on her heel and stomped towards the door, though not before giving Masquerade a savage glare. "I'm going to get ready for school," she announced snappishly, slamming the door after and leaving Alice and Masquerade in an uncomfortable silence.

"…" Masquerade patiently waited for Alice to reprimand him gently, tell him to sincerely apologize to Runo and to never do something so mean ever again. But it appeared that Alice's nerves had been rattled; she hurriedly climbed to her feet and left the room, muttering some excuse about 'needing to help out in the restaurant'.

However, he wasn't off completely scot-free.

"So _that_ was what you were planning," Tigrerra said, her voice and glare severe as she gazed down at him from her dollhouse. "I must say, I _highly_ disapprove."

"Oh yes, because your opinion is just so _devastatingly_ important to me."

Tigrerra let out an indignant huff. "_Must_ you be so confusing? Last night you do something fully admirable for her, all on your own conscience, and this morning you chose to scare her, possibly _injure_ her?"

Masquerade frowned. "In case you didn't notice, I _did_ arrange a pillow for her. She wouldn't have gotten hurt…too badly."

"That isn't the point," Tigrerra argued. "The point is…why are you both so nice, yet…mean?"

"…" Masquerade cocked his head to the side, a new smirk on his lips as he considered the Haos Bakugan. "I…just want to keep a healthy balance, let's say…"

* * * * * * * * * * * *

A timid knock, only the slightest bit louder than the furious sound of bristles being rapidly rubbed over a hard surface, interrupted Runo as she was brushing her teeth. "What do you want?!" she shouted, taking the toothbrush out to spit into the sink. The door slowly creaked open, and Alice appeared over her shoulder in the mirror, her reflection distraught.

"Runo…are you okay? Did you get hurt at all?"

"I'm _fine_," Runo snapped, stuffing her toothbrush back in her mouth and swishing it around furiously. "It's just…I can't believe that _Masquerade_ would do something so _immature_. I mean, _seriously_. He's supposed to be an evil _creep_, not some sort of…sort of…crap, what's the word I'm thinking of…"

Alice stood there in silence as Runo frowned, trying to think of the word perfect enough to describe him besides the customary 'creep'. It was a few minutes until she spoke up again. "Runo…I think you might have…insulted Masquerade…"

Runo waved off Alice's assumption with a disbelieving snort. "You know what, he's just a _jerk_. A jerk and a creep who needs to _grow up_ and…and stop being evil."

"No, really Runo," Alice insisted, taking another step inside. "He didn't look very happy when you said that he…that he was just like…you know. Dan."

The bluette grunted, a few beads of toothpaste flying out of her mouth and splattering on the counter. "I _hope_ he was insulted. Stupid immature _jerk_…acting as if he can go around, playing pranks on people and scaring them half to death…creep."

"Runo…maybe you should…I don't know, say sorry…?"

Alice knew she had said something wrong when Runo's rotating hand went still, the toothbrush lodged in the pocket of her cheek. "Apologize…to _him?_" Runo repeated softly, her words garbled up with shock and the obstruction in her mouth. "Apologize because _he_ tripped _me?_ No way. Now just go, I have to finished getting ready."

"I…" Alice hesitated, then just did as she was told. She quietly stepped back out the door, shutting the bathroom door shut behind her, leaving Runo to glare at her reflection alone.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

It was a five to ten minutes before Runo had reentered her room, face vigorously washed, haired brushed down and separated into two ponytails and teeth gleaming bright. Masquerade and Alice were given ample warning by the series of stomps that drowned out the bustling below as her parents hurried to prepare the restaurant for opening. By the time the door had flung open, Alice was rummaging through the drawers and searching for her apron, Tigrerra was sitting dutifully in her dollhouse, and Masquerade…

Was lounging on her bed.

Runo stopped short, staring at the bold boy stretched out in a relaxed position on top of her covers, arms crossed above his head and her pillow nestled beneath his injured ankle, and her mouth dropped open. He turned his head slightly towards her, giving her a lazy smirk. "Took you long enough…"

Alice turned around to give him a warning glance without Runo seeing. The blonde boy recalled her desperate pleas when she had first seen him climbing up there, mingled with Tigrerra's sighs. _Masquerade, please don't, Runo's already upset enough…you gave her a bit of a rough start this morning, please don't make it worse…I really don't think I could handle it if she murdered you._

Silly, silly Alice…didn't she realize that he had to test his limits? This really was the best way to do so…although the way the bluette was grinding her teeth together said otherwise.

"Get off," she snarled through gritted teeth, her shaking hands balling up into fists at her side. "_Now_."

"Ah, but I've _finally_ gotten comfy," he said, making sure to add a little whine to his voice as he made his point shifting slightly, grinning. "Besides, I'm _injured_. Don't you feel any pity for me?"

"_Pity?!_" Runo snapped, taking a step forward. "Oh, just like you took pity on all those kids you brawled?!"

"Now now, we aren't talking about _me_ here. We're talking about _you_, and your cold-heartedness towards those in pain."

"Here's your clothes, Runo," Alice said hurriedly, grabbing a shirt and skirt from the dresser and pressing them into her arms as Runo took another step, opening her mouth to yell at him. "And…er…your homework…and Tigrerra," she added, stepping around the bluette and seizing her binder, books and Bakugan, bundling them all in Runo's arms. "You better hurry, you might be late!"

With a grudging grumble, Runo obliged, but not before snapping one last thing towards the smug blonde. "You better not be in my bed when I get back! Got it?!"

"Loud and clear," he said dryly as Alice ushered her out, chuckling softly. Alice gave him a disparaging look, which he duly noted with a grateful nod. "Ah, Alice…what would I do without you?"

Alice just sighed in exasperation, shaking her head sadly. "Masquerade…please don't do that anymore. When she gets back from school…do you think you could apologize to her?"

"Apologize? But Alice, I need to get my revenge. The act of pushing innocents out of windows must not go unpunished."

"Please?" Alice begged, leaning against the doorframe wearily. "If you can apologize to her, I'll get her to apologize to you, okay?"

Masquerade considered her silently, running his tongue over his teeth. "Well…perhaps I can _entertain_ the idea…"

**A/N**: Gack, sorry about taking so long again…my schedule's been really messed up lately…or maybe it's just me…you know what? I'm going to blame T.V. It distracts me…why must _Two And A Half Men_ be so addictingly funny? T.T It's a sad world…


	6. Sincere Apologies And Deal Renewals

**Chapter 6**

**A/N**: KENZIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!! …I hate you. T.T Love ya, but hate ya. Anywho…I'm gonna attempt to make the pairing more…pairingish with this chappie…it's gonna end up SO demented…

…Right…Kenzie…I hate you…NO HEART LEFT FOR YOOOOUUUUU! OR AT LEAST NOT UNTIL I GET MY ROOT BEER!

**Disclaimer**: Kyah, I don't own Bakugan. ^.^ Okie? Okie.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

School _sucked_.

It sucked because it was _school_, for crying out loud. It sucked because she had the _worst_ awakening ever. It sucked because she had been exhausted the entire day, nodding away during class as her lack of sleep caught up with her. It sucked because she was still stuck with that narcissistic, wannabe teacher who seemed to see it fit to text his new girlfriend the entire class. It sucked because she had to see him again two periods later and be reminded of the fact that he _still_ wasn't giving up on her horrendous dancing skills. It sucked because she ended up kicking her partner in a place where it hurt _very_ much, and ended up with detention for it. It sucked because the entire day she could do nothing but think about the fact that her enemy was in her room, probably going through all of her private stuff when Alice wasn't looking.

And seeing a familiar pink and silver apparation hovering just outside the school entrance did not make it any better. "What are _you_ doing here?" Runo snarled, instantly stepping to the side as soon as she had managed to squeeze out of the crowd flooding through the double-doors.

Julie shrugged, grinning. "I was on my way to the restaurant, figured I should drop by and see how you were doing! Come on, let's get you hoooo-_ooooome!_" Before Runo had a chance to snap at her, Julie was grabbing her wrist and dragging her away, yapping and yapping and yapping…about things she didn't _really_ want to yap about. "Sooooooo, how's _Masquerade?_ Whatcha do with him last night? What about this morning? Huh? You know, I've been thinking, and Masquerade doesn't seem all that bad to me…"

Runo snorted. "Not all that bad? He's a _creep_ and a _jerk_."

"Aw, don't be so _hard_ on him, Runo…"

"_Hard_ on him?" Julie found herself jerked backwards as Runo stopped. She turned her head around, fully prepared to whine and complain until the bluette started moving again. The glare on her face warned her otherwise, though. "_Hard?_ Not even forcing feeding him _poison_ would be too hard. Or _locking_ him in some dungeon, _shooting_ him or forcing him to watch _Teletubbies_ would be too hard."

"…"

"They had a bit of a…rough start to the morning," Tigrerra explained quietly. That didn't get rid of Julie's bewilderment, though. "It's a rather…_long_ story."

"…Oh…kay…well, let's get to the restaurant then! Off we go!"

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Runo! You're back…oh, hello Julie. Nice to see you."

"Hey, Alice!" Julie whipped a hand up and waved, a big grin on her face as she trailed in through the restaurant doors after a much more _apathetic_ Runo. There was no one around to wince at her loud greeting; the little café was deserted. "Whatcha got there?"

Alice glanced down at the careful slices of ham, lettuce and bread she had laid out on a plate, a mayonnaise-coated knife laying down on one of the pieces of bread. "Oh, I was just preparing…_him_ something to eat. He seemed to be really hungry, so…"

"Hmph." Runo plunked herself down onto one of the barstools, throwing her bag against the side of the counter. Alice winced, carefully edging the food away for fear of…well, whatever Runo could possibly do to it. Burn it with that evil look she had, perhaps… "Why's he up there alone? What, do you _trust_ him or something?"

"Wha…_no!_" Alice shook her head frantically. "It's…I don't think he's really interested in doing anything _underhanded_…I mean, he didn't try to escape last night, he's been _behaving_ himself…well, behaving after you left…"

Runo slammed her fist against the counter, snarling as Tigrerra rolled off her shoulder. "All the _more_ reason not to trust him! He's probably trying to trick you or something!"

"Well…it isn't as though we could just let him _starve_…" Runo glared at Alice meaningfully. "Seriously Runo. It'd be _wrong_ to starve him."

"…I don't see how it's wrong…"

There was clearly no point in carrying on this argument. Alice just turned back to her sandwich, quietly finishing its assembly as Runo crossed her arms, fuming. Julie watched Alice with rapt attention, as though the _exact_ way she placed the slice of bread on the top were a secret art. Time to execute Plan A. A rather _brilliant_ plan, if Julie could say so herself. Especially considering she'd _just_ made it up.

It started out as a soft sniffle, just _barely_ noticeable as Alice carefully picked up the plate. Then a few dry gasps, a trail of tears squeezing themselves from her eyes…

"Julie!" Alice quickly set the plate back down as the Australian practically threw herself against the bar, burying her head in her arms to muffle her sobs. Hesitantly, the redhead set a hand on Julie's heaving back, trying to hide her panic. "Julie, are you okay, what's the matter…"

"What's _your_ problem?" Runo grumbled, only about half as concerned as Alice was. She inched away from the sobbing girl, looking a bit disturbed as Julie jerked her head up, glaring at the bluette through red-rimmed eyes.

"Wh…why sho…should I t…tell _you?_" she demanded, gulping for breath. "I…it's not like y…you'd _care_. But…but A-_Alice _would…"

"It's okay," Alice said soothingly, still baffled. "What's the matter?"

"I-I don't want to s…say in front of _her_," Julie said, with another accusatory look towards Runo. "Sh-she'd…she's…"

"What did _I_ do?"

"Er…" Alice looked around frantically, trying to think above Julie's weeping, her eyes finally landing on the forgotten plate, and possibly one of the worst ideas ever had occurred to her. "Runo, can you take that sandwich up to Masquerade? Please?"

"_What?!_" The bar stool toppled backwards as Runo jumped to her feet, planting her hands on the counter with a snarl. "Why do _I_ have to?! I don't wanna go up there alone!"

Before Alice could either retort or change her mind, a terrible sound filled their ears; Julie's wailing moved up in pitch, becoming a series of choked squeaks that practically shook the floors. Runo hastily picked up the plate, darting towards the stairs.

"You know, I don't need him to be whining about how hungry he is! I'll just go take this up quickly!"

"O…okay…" Alice turned to Julie, patting her hand comfortingly. "Julie, can you tell me what's the matter?"

Julie raised her head, the sobs dying away. Her brilliant plan had only gotten her so far, it seemed. "…Well…I had this _dream_…"

* * * * * * * * * * * *

His stomach rumbled again, a low and imploring sound, begging for that small form of sustenance that would shut it up. He scowled, half at his weakness and half at Alice. She'd been down there for fifteen minutes, didn't take _that_ long to make a sandwich…he remembered that it had only taken Runo about five, and _she_ had to be sneaky about…

Runo…he craned his neck around, blinking at the alarm clock. She should be home shortly…should he move? …Nah, not like she could _really_ do anything to him…except kick him…hit him over the head with a book…rip out his throat…oh dear.

But moving would be a sign of submission, of weakness and fear that he refused to show. Besides, this was the best vantage point to make his 'apology'. And apology that was going to get him killed…but her reaction would just be _priceless_…

And that was when the door was flung open.

_…Remember, priceless reaction, priceless reaction…_ He kept up that mental mantra as Runo stared at him from the doorway, hardly noticing as the door rebounded off the wall and knocked back into her elbow. He glanced nervously at the plate she held in one hand, taking note of the way her fingers were tightening around the edge. _Priceless reaction, priceless reaction…_

"…I told you not to be in my bed when I got home."

"And _I_ only said 'loud and clear'. I don't recall agreeing to actually _not_ being in your bed." Crap, was she going to throw that plate at him? She was going to throw that plate at him…no, she was taking ten deep breaths…another ten…ten more…she was going to throw that plate, he just knew it…

It was a tense minute or so before she finally took a movement beyond deep breaths, and to his great relief it _wasn't_ throwing the plate. She simply stalked further into the room, practically flinging the dish onto the bedside table; he winced when the sandwich jumped with the impact, but to his relief it stayed on the plate.

"There," she snapped, crossing her arms and fixing him with a nasty glare. "Now _get away from my bed!_"

"I'll put on my list of _Things To Casually Consider_," he replied, giving her an arrogant grin. "But it's pretty full already…might not be able to get to it for a while now…"

"I'm _serious!_ Get _out_ of my bed! Now!"

"It'll have to go after considering whether I should go with Telus or Shaw…maybe Rogers…"

He fully expected her to leap at him, hands outstretched into claws and lips curled into a snarl, even half hoped for it…only half. But to his shock, she simply spun around on her heel, stomping towards the door. Damn…he didn't apologize yet…had to stop her…

"Ga-_AH!_"

"What is it?!" Without even thinking about it, Runo was twirling back around, dashing to the bedside as the boy suddenly contracted into a shuddering ball, the blankets twisted with his legs as he pulled them up close to his chest, his hands clamping themselves to the bands of his mask. Uncertain and panicking, she touched his shoulder, like Alice always did when she was comforting someone. "Y-you better…better not be faking…or else…"

He answered her in a whimper, shaking his head slightly. That scared her more than anything; this was _Masquerade_. Proud, smug, composed…_that_ was what he was supposed to be, everything an enemy _should_ be. Not this sudden pained, needy _child_…

"M…Masquerade…" She glanced at the door, biting her lip. They needed Alice, Alice would know what to do, she always did. "I…I'll be right back, I promise…"

But a shaking hand had curled itself around her wrist, stopping her from moving away, begging her to stay, not wanting to be alone…

She yelped as she was suddenly jerked backwards onto the bed, a gasp mixed with pain as a knee collided with her back and an arm wrapped itself around her stomach, skin tickling skin. Instinctively, she struggled against his grip as he shifted around a bit, making them a bit more comfortable, or at least what he must have _thought_ was comfortable.

"I knew you'd fall for that," he murmured into her ear, chuckling darkly. "You're so easy to trick…"

"What the _hell?!_" Runo struggled against his arm, only for it to tighten; déjà vu much. "What do you think you're doing?! Let go of me, now!"

"I'm only being thoughtful enough to fulfill Alice's request," he said lightly. "She _did_ say please afterall, more than you can claim to be able to say. Really, instead of yelling at me, you could have just have asked for me to get out of your bed _politely_."

"What are you talking about?! I don't think Alice would ask you to…to do whatever the hell you're doing right now!"

"Ah, but I _am_. This, my dear, is an apology."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…What?"

Runo answered his bemused question with as much scorn and confusion as she could summon. "How is…is _this_…an apology?"

"…It's…a hug…is there something wrong with that?"

"…" Yes, there was _indeed_ something wrong with that. She was on her _bed_, trapped in the arms of her enemy, who was telling that he was trying to apologize through…a _hug_. There were many, many, _many_ things wrong with this. "…This is your idea of an _apology?_"

"…Pretty much."

"…You are so _pathetic!_" She tried to wiggle around, so that she could face him and yell at his stupid masked face. But he kept his hold on her stubbornly, forcing her to twist her neck around. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the tip of his mouth turned down in a bewildered frown. "What kind of apology is this?! Have you never apologized to _anyone_ before in your life?!"

"…Not really…shouldn't it just be the thought that counts here?"

"NO! LET ME GO!"

"…Nah. You called me pathetic, I'm not letting you go after that."

"I'M SERIOUS, MASQUERADE! LET ME GO RIGHT NOW!"

"Or what?" She could hear the arrogance creep back into his voice, smugly believing that she was helpless in his grip. With a growl, she raised her foot and kicked at his; useless. She couldn't get enough force behind it in this position, which _he_ fully realized. He chuckled. "Ooh, now _that_ hurt. What else are you gonna do, stab me with your fingernails?"

Before she had a chance to consider that idea, he had both of her wrists gathered up in his hands, forcefully crossing her arms over her chest and clutching them tight.

"Ha."

"…I hate you. _Let me go._"

"Not until you accept this as an apology."

"NO!" Her legs whipped upwards, thrashing to air helplessly. All she got as a reaction from him was a snicker. It was a few minutes of relentless struggle before she finally gave up, panting hard and glaring at the two tired limbs for failing her.

"Wasn't that just so _cute?_" Masquerade murmured, his breath tickling the back of her neck…

_See? I told you that you wouldn't want to hear it…_

"You owe me answers."

His quiet laughs were cut off by the random question. "What do you mean, I owe you answers?"

Runo looked down at her lap as she remembered the incident, her heart beating fast with the uncomfortable memory. "You said…that you'd answer my questions…if I…I…you know…" Damn…she sounded so _stupid_…

There was a moment of silence as he too recalled the event, wincing. "That little deal? Too bad, it expired."

"WHAT?!" The struggle was back on, and this time Masquerade had his work cut out for him as Runo twisted and pushed against his arms, indignant and furious. "But…I…you know! _Twice!_ Since when did the deal 'expire'?!"

"When you tried to _kill_ me," he grunted, turning his face away to avoid being slapped by a pigtail. "I thought it was pretty obvious it was never going to happen! Besides, the first was a fluke, and _I_ kissed _you_ the second time!"

"…" Her brain and body shut down, becoming still and sluggish, at that magic word, that _small_ little word that she had tried so hard to avoid. Almost automatically, she said that only thing that could come to mind at the moment. "…Shut up."

"Why? Are we getting _awkward?_" he asked, his voice once more cool and smooth now that she had stopped fighting. She felt his head swoop down by her ear, imagined his lips curling up into a smirk again. "Right, I'm supposed to be apologizing…how about this?"

She jumped when his hand suddenly flung upwards, looking as though it were about to slap her, and closed her eyes instinctively, cringing against his chest. But her fears went unrealized when she felt his fingers suddenly stroked her cheek, light and gentle. But her eyes remained closed as he began speaking again, almost absentmindedly.

"Since it seems to be so _important_ to you…how about I resurrect our deal?"

He didn't fight to keep her still as she suddenly bolted up, eyes snapping open and whipping around to face him and shoving his arms away. Somewhere…she was finally getting somewhere, perhaps something good could come out of this whole blasted mess afterall. "You're gonna talk?! _Good!_ Okay, I wanna know _everything_, why you work for Naga, the whole mask deal…"

"Ah, ah, ah." He wagged a finger in front of her face, that ever-so annoying smirk still lingering on his lips. "Like I said before, first was a fluke, so it doesn't count. And the second time…well, that was past the expiration date."

"…_Noooooo_…" The excitement, her sudden perkiness had disappeared, replaced by a mix of crushed hope and foreboding. "No, that doesn't make it an apology, you creep…"

"Are you kidding? Kissing me will be the most amazing apology ever." He was getting bolder with every passing moment, going as far as to lean forward. She wanted to move backwards, escape his uncomfortably close gaze. But everything was frozen, even her wide eyes that stared back at her bewilderingly in the reflection of his mask. "Don't you want answers?"

…Yes. Yes, she did. She wanted something to compensate for all the trouble he'd put her through, all the stress and anger and uncertainty. Everyone else, even stupid old Dan, would completely forget their theory that she and Masquerade were 'together' or in a 'relationship' when she finally brought them information, something that could bring them closer to their goal…and if she had to kiss him…he was coming closer…

**A/N**: _Bleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh_…that chappie sucked SO much…bleh bleh bleeeeeh…ending sucked too…bleh…expiration date...makes it sound like rotten milk...I don't suck that much at kiss scenes...T.T...wait...I do...okie...


	7. An Attempt To Keep A 'Plot' Going Longer

**Chapter Seven**

**A/N**: You know what I realized? 'Chappie' and 'chapter' have the same number of words…six…I never realized it before…yeah…anywho…how's life?

**CloneGirl**: …You know…so far I had only forced someone else to say the disclaimer in chappie four…SEE, CHAPPIE AND CHAPTER! SAME AMOUNT OF LETTERS! HOW THE HELLION DID I THINK THAT WRITING CHAPPIE WOULD MAKE MY LIFE EASIER?!

**Masquerade And Runo**: …

**CloneGirl**: …Yeah…anywho…wanna say the disclaimer? Now that I'm trying to force myself out of the laziness accompanied with how much typing comes with trying to persuade peoples into saying it…

**Masquerade And Runo**: …

**CloneGirl**: …Okie, whatever. I'LL just say it. I DO NOT OWN BAKUGAAAAAAN! OKIE?! …Yeah…

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

His head was tilted just above her as he shifted closer, his smirk becoming more tempting as each heart-throbbing second passed them by with a scream, demanding that they just get on with it. Slim fingers curled around her chin, gently enticing her into lifting her face upwards so that she could stare into her reflection and watch her eyes grow wider, watch the pink tinge on her cheeks become more pronounced as the rest of her face paled, worsening as his other arm slipped around her waist and his warm breath fanned across her face. Answers…she wanted her answers, this was all to get them…oh hell…

"GYAH!"

He jerked backwards with the sudden shout, arms snapping back to his sides as Runo scrambled back blindly, desperate for escape. His hand weakly moved forward as though intending to pull her back, his mouth dropping open in a warning that would have come too late, even if he felt like speaking; she had already tumbled off the bed in a tangle of limbs and squeaks. "Ah…"

There was no time to ask if she was okay, no time for excuses, explanations and frantic apologies. He could only stare blankly at the door, still swinging gently from her speedy retreat. …Well…that was interesting…and rather insulting…

He glanced at the sandwich, previously forgotten in their rather 'intimate' conversation and completely unharmed, and at the now-rumpled blankets that he still sat upon. And there was hardly a scratch upon him; just a ringing in his ears from her shriek. A moment or two of silence as he contemplated the situation… "I LIVED!"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"A…and the mice…they were all _black_, Alice…BLACK! AND GRAY! AND THEY WERE WEARING BELTS WITH SKULLS ON THEM! They were like, _emo_ mice or something…and they were in my _closet!_ MY CLOSET ALICE! THEY WERE EATING ALL MY CLOTHES! AND ALL THE CLOTHES THEY WEREN'T EATING, THEY WERE DUMPING THEM IN VATS OF BLACK DYE!"

"…"

"DON'T YOU KNOW HOW TERRIBLE I LOOK IN BLACK?! And th-that's not all…it gets _worse_. Th-they were carrying these _spoons_…"

Julie's epic retelling of the dream that had her sobbing earlier was rudely cut off by a sudden clattering of shoes and flesh against wood, and within moments Runo had appeared at the top of the staircases, pale, gasping and toppling down the steps in her haste.

"Runo?!" Alice abandoned the Australian and dashed for the blue-haired girl, now struggling to stand as she had fallen on the bottom step. The red head was quick to help, grabbing Runo's elbow and straightening her up, quickly scanning her over for bruises, injuries, a sign that Masquerade had possibly… "Runo, what happened…?"

"DID YOU TELL MASQUERADE TO APOLOGIZE TO ME?!"

She started, confusion and surprise flitting across her face. But she didn't try to hide it from her, Alice saw no reason… "Well, yes…I told him that if he apologized to you…"

"DON'T _EVER_ MAKE HIM TRY TO APOLOGIZE TO ME _AGAIN!_ HE SUCKS AT IT!"

"…" This was something that needed much explanation…

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Hydranoid was completely…and entirely…_alone_.

And he hated it.

Hydranoid was supposed to be pampered, carefully observed; he was, afterall, the Bakugan meant to become strong enough to retrieve the Infinity Core for Master Naga. So why, _why_ was he all alone in the library of Masquerade's manor, with _no one_ around for company?

Of course Masquerade was gone; he was now completely and utterly certain that his unfortunate master had indeed become the Brawler girl's latest meal…she had probably picked his remains out of her teeth with a tooth pick by now. And Hal-G…that damned scientist was too busy scuttling around, trying to find ways to help Master Naga keep hold of the Silent Core, find something to assuage his pain. And when the old man _did_ come around, it was only to yell at poor Hydranoid, accuse him of being the one who lost the masked boy. Hydranoid sincerely hoped that that ridiculous cape of his got caught in…something that would get him killed…

It'd be easy to clear up this mess, to tell Hal-G that Masquerade was most likely, for some strange, demented reason, somewhere with that Brawler girl (in her stomach juices, that is, unless there was a possibility that he was still alive). Then the scientist could just dally on over there, grab the idiot and bring him back so that Naga could scream at him, Hal-G reprimand him and Hydranoid could uselessly try to ask him what had happened before being spurned and sent out to battle worthless brats again. A nice little pastime.

But _something_, some stupid thing, stopped Hydranoid every time. Conscience? Never…not only did Hydranoid scorn the thought of having such a thing, but it made no sense. Really, getting Masquerade back here was something a conscience would be demanding he do, instead of leaving him at the mercy of the Brawler girl. Loyalty? Yes, something that Hydranoid did indeed possess, but, just as that first idea, made no sense in this situation; refusing to reveal information that could possibly save his master was not what many referred to as loyalty. Indignation for his treatment these past few weeks? A bit more plausible…but Hydranoid wasn't going to risk Naga's pain and wrath for petty revenge…

And what of his little deal with Tigrerra? Hydranoid felt sick at the thought of that tigress, smugly claiming her bragging rights…she was in the perfect position to make her mistress loathe the boy to the deepest pits of hell, while at the same time somehow convincing his master that there was something lovable about the girl. Something he could not allow…but yet he was.

And so within several hours of careful, slow consideration, Hydranoid had narrowed down the possibilities to one thing, so far-fetched, yet still strangely reasonable…_he was under some form of voodoo curse._

Which was why he was currently rolling about the bases of shelves of books, desperately hoping there would be a book that could tell him how to break this curse, while at the same time praying that he might develop the height and opposable thumbs needed to get the book.

…This might end up taking a while…

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"…Wow…that's kinda awkward…"

Runo said nothing, simply continued to glare hatefully at the stubby pencil of eyeliner that Julie held in her fingers. How something so small and seemingly harmless had made her spill about what had just happened between her and Masquerade…

Alice patted the bluette comfortingly on the arm. "I guess it's a good thing you got out of there…who knows what he might have done…"

"Are you kidding?! We could have a wealth of info on Naga right now!" With a dramatic sigh, Julie dropped her strangely threatening stance and plopped down on a chair, across the table from the other two girls. "And it's _just_ a kiss…not anything to freak out about…" _OH COME ON! YOU COULD HAVE FALLEN MADLY IN LOVE WITH MASQUERADE BY NOW, AND DAN WOULD BE ALL MIIIIIIIIIINE! WHY DO YOU MAKE THINGS SO DIFFICULT?!_

Runo's face turned a nasty shade of red, brought on by fury and embarrassment. "Well unlike you, I'm not a little wh…"

"It doesn't matter," Alice cut in hurriedly, before the conversation could take on an even uglier turn. "Look, it's obvious that it's going to be…difficult to be comfortable with him around…"

"You think?" Runo muttered, sliding a bit lower in her seat, arms crossed and pout surly. "I'll never sleep properly again…"

"Well, if we're going to keep him here…" Alice paused for a moment, as though hoping someone would suggest that it would be easier to let him go free. The closest she got was Runo biting her lip and averting her eyes; however much they might have hated it, the safety of Vestroia and Earth came first. With a slightly more defeated tone, Alice continued. "Well, we're going to have to…try…to get along with him…"

"…" Alice shifted uncomfortably under Julie's and Runo's shocked stares. One would think that becoming friends with the boy was the most alien suggestion any sane human being could make…it didn't get any better when Runo suddenly burst out into harsh, wild laughter.

"GET ALONG?! WITH _HIM?!_ VERY FUNNY ALICE, VERY FUNNY!"

"…Well…I thought it might make things easier," she mumbled, glancing down forlornly at her hands, clasped tightly together on her lap. "You know…maybe if we knew each other a bit better, or at least weren't so mean, there'd be less arguments…and he wouldn't pull any more stunts like he did today…"

Julie adopted a strangely thoughtful look as Runo's laughter slowly and disbelievingly died down. "You know…it's not _that_ bad an idea. I mean…it's actually really good…maybe we could even get him on our side, get the dirt on Naga that way…seeing as Runo's too much of a _baby_ to give him a little kiss…"

The Australian's scorn was lost as Runo gaped at Alice. "Are you serious?! Please…not like he'd go along anyways! I'm telling you, this is a _really_ bad idea! He'll twist it somehow, make us help him in some way…I don't wanna be friends with him! No, no, _no…!_"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"…Go Fish? Why would _I_ want to play Go Fish?"

Ignoring Runo's furious mutterings from her safe spot behind her, Alice hurried on. "Well, we aren't very busy today, and just to pass the time…and it'd be rude to exclude you…"

"…Maybe you just want to somehow swindle information out of me…"

"If we wanted to do that, we'd be playing strip poker!" Julie chimed in cheerfully, practically dancing around Alice. "That'd be, like, so much easier for info than Go Fi-OOOOWWWW! RUNO, WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!"

"Don't give him ideas," Runo hissed, withdrawing her fist and glaring at the bemused boy from over Alice's shoulder. "He's a creeper, remember…"

Masquerade simply snorted at her 'hushed' words, but otherwise politely ignored them. "Am I _really_ supposed to believe that you simply wish to extend some form of friendship to me? After being pushed out a window, locked in a closet, compared to Daniel and denied the comfort of a bed…"

"OH DON'T GIVE US THAT! YOU'VE BEEN IN THAT BED _ALL_ DAY, AND YOU'RE _STILL_ IN IT!"

He arrogantly waved off this _supremely_ unimportant fact. "…And now all of a sudden you're being _nice?_ Suspicious…"

"Alice's been being nice to you the entire time," Julie pointed out, nodding in indignation on the redhead's behalf. "Come on…just play, just a quick game…come oooooon…"

Runo felt like tearing his face off when he pursed his lips together and tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Just a nice, simple game of Go Fish…rather hard to imagine, with _her_ around. I find myself fearing being mangled via papercut." How woefully clear it was to see who 'she' was. How lucky he was that 'she' restrained herself for Alice's sake.

"Masquerade…it's obvious that we're going to all be stuck together for a bit," Alice said softly. "And…well, it's going to be absolutely horrid if we aren't able to get along. So can't we at least…try?" Alice held out her cupped hands, where an innocent pack of cards sat.

"…" He stared at the cards for a moment, before sighing in exaggerated defeat. "Fine…if it's so _important_ to you. Just one question."

By the look of joy on Alice's face, she'd have been happy to answer any question, be it anything from one plus one to philosophy and quantum physics. "Yes?"

"How exactly do you _play_ Go Fish?"

"…"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

After several strenuous minutes of teaching the boy the fine principles of Go Fish and getting a nonviolent game started, they were finally seated around the bed, where Masquerade sat, smugly looking through the cards in his hands (much to Runo's clear displeasure).

"Oh, oh, Alice! Got any twelves?!" Julie leaned forward eagerly, blinking at the redhead with hopeful eyes. The other girl sighed, extracting a card from her hand and handing it to Julie, who promptly squealed and slid it among her own cards. "Okay, Runo's turn!"

The bluette grumbled, practically shoving her face into her fan of cards so as to avoid the looks that _he_ was giving her. "Erm…Julie…any aces?"

"Nope! Go Fish~!"

"You know, _I_ have some aces," the blonde spoke up, glancing at Runo pointedly, exaggerated boredom turning down the corners of his mouth. "Three of them, actually. Now, if you weren't being such a sourpuss and ignoring me…"

Alice gave him a surprised, confused look. "Masquerade…"

He cut her off with a lofty wave of his hand. "Yes yes, Alice. I know the rules, I shouldn't be telling her my cards. I'm simply being a _gentleman_. She _is_, afterall, currently losing, is she not?"

Runo proved his point by opting to glare at her knees, instead of back at him or at the lone set of cards set beside her, her face warming considerably.

"But Masquerade…" Alice's protest lingered away as he shot her a look, coolly tapping a finger against the back of his cards. There was something about that look that commanded her to shut up…it kind of scared her… "Er…my turn…um…Julie, any fives?"

"Aw…yeah, I have two of them…this _so_ isn't fair!"

Alice could only give the pouting Australian an apologetic look, before turning to Masquerade. "Your turn…"

"Of course, of course." With a mockingly heavy-hearted sigh, Masquerade carefully considered the cards in his hands. "Runo, I really should ask for your one…but," he added before she could burst into a fierce objection, "I shall be merciful…and ask for a nine instead."

"…" With slow movements clearly indicating the pain resulting from restraining oneself from attacking, Runo drew out a card and slid it across the floor, snatching her hand back as Masquerade reached down to pick it up.

"Alright~! My turn!" Seemingly oblivious to Runo's glowering, Julie looked around the little group, eyes glittering. "Hmm…Masquerade! Threes?"

"So sorry, ma'am…not a three in my hand. Go Fish."

"Dang…oh well. RUNO! YOUR TURN!"

"I know, I know," the bluette muttered, once again hiding behind her cards as she carefully considered who to ask. She couldn't help but glance at her side; just one set. Everyone else…they were all ahead…losing…no, not in front of him…couldn't lose…but should such drastic measures be taken…? Damn it all… "Masquerade, I want…!"

"YOU WANNA GET TOGETHER WITH HIM?!"

"…" They turned to Julie, who had thrown down her cards and had her hands clasped, eyes shining and mouth hanging open in a goofy smile. There was a moment of silence before…

"WHAT THE HELL, JULIE?! I WANT HIS _ACES!_ WHERE THE HELL DID YOU GET THAT IDEA?!"

"…Oh…well then…sorry, I…well…okay, I'll just, like…be quiet here…sorry…um…yeah, so _sorry_…"

There were several tense moments of silence as Julie shifted back a bit, expression properly abashed. Runo continued to glower at her, her scowl a warning for any other such outbursts before finally turning back to the matter at hand, eyes looking at some spot on the floor. "Your aces. Give 'em."

"Aces, hmm?" His voice was bored and smooth, politely acting as though he hadn't heard Julie's hurried little conclusion, and he was coolly looking through his hands, leaving Runo to tap her hand against the floor impatiently. "So sorry, it appears that I have _no_ aces…"

"WHAT?! JUST EARLIER YOU SAID YOU HAD THREE ACES!"

"Did I now? I'm sorry, I don't recall ever saying such a thing…"

Alice grimaced as Runo's mouth dropped open, her eyes instinctively dropping down to her own cards, staring over the two elegantly scripted _A_'s that peeped around another medley of numbers. She should've told Runo about his bluff…_really_ should have…she should _also _really tell Julie that now was not the time to giggle…

"YOU JERK! YOU…YOU SAID…GYAH!" Alice wasn't quick enough; before she could even set down her hand and move forward, Runo had leapt forward, forcefully grabbing Masquerade's lax wrists and peering at his hand, mouth gaping wider. "YOU LIAR! WHY'D YOU SAY YOU HAD THREE ACES, YOU CREEP?!"

"I _never_ said such a thing," the blonde replied, voice haughty as he wiggled his wrists out of her grasp. "First that vile accusation, and now you're _cheating_ by looking at my hand…my my…"

"CREEP!"

"NO, RUNO! YOU'RE GOING TO KILL HIM! RUNO, PLEASE!" Alice would have to go through her games list a bit more seriously after she pried Runo's hands off the poor villian's throat…

**A/N**: Gyah…hurried the ending…a lot…heh…sorry…another long update…I feel terrible…very…terrible…I've been very bad about fanfiction and such lately…just…losing focus…must…regain focus…need…root beer OH MY GOD ROOT BEER. …That's what I need…root beer shall solve my problems…and world peace…and hunger…how…I do not know…root beer is just magical…oh my god…I think I just lost focus again…

Anywho, important news…I. CHANGED. MY FONT. AND FONT SIZE. …You know…not on …but on my Microsoft Word…went from _Times New Roman_, size 12 to _Arial_, size 10. This, my friends, is a big moment for me. Yep. HUGE. MAMMOTH. MAJOR. CALENDAR WORTHY. EXCEPT OUR CALENDAR DISAPPEARED, SO I COULDN'T MARK IT ON THE CALENDER…wow…a moment so huge, unable to be recorded on a calender…but yeah…thought you all should know…because…you know…you all love me so much that you want to know everything about me and the strenuous changes in my life…yeah…you think I'm that perfectly amazing to know about…you know…the aforementioned strenuous changes…because…font changing…is…strenuous…OH MY GOD MY CAT JUST SCARED THE FREAKING HELL OUT OF ME.

…My cat's hyper…yeah…I fear for my life…thought…you should know OH MY GOD FOCUS LOSS.

And on a note that actually pertains to the story…yeah…the Go Fish game was really just…something to write…yeah…cause…I had nothing else…to write…or planned for this chappie…for I am a terrible person who continually forgets to plan…and therefore…fails at life…but will still take over the world through sheer awesomeness…


	8. Hair Discrimination And Confessions

**Chapter Eight**

**A/N**: Just for the record, I have VERY good reasons as to why my chappies are taking so long! First off, highschool (Pure Math with the teacher Folman is based off of, which means homework nearly everyday since school began), secondly, a job that I have to get to as soon as I get home, only to return at eight, and then an hour and a half before bed. So yeah…getting harder to schedule writing around it all…I would just announce my writing to be put on a break…but then…I'd feel bad…this chappie is too short…

By the way.

I now hate myself.

Because of this chapter.

I can't even bear to call it 'chappie'.

In my defence, though I hate to defend myself for this horrible deed that I have done, I needed some sort of clichéd and overused plot twist. Just so I have something besides random crap to go on for the next few chapters. However, this does not excuse the terrible person that I am.

But don't worry.

The plot twist won't last.

I'd hang myself before it did.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bakugan in any way, shape, or form. …Yeah. Thought I should mention that.

* * *

Go Fish had not ended happily.

Not with Runo sitting on her bed and staring at the window with a glare so intense and ferocious, one had to wonder at how the glass managed to stay intact.

Not with the locked up Masquerade, whose rebellious mutters could be heard through the closet that he had happily closed himself.

Not with a hysterically laughing Julie trying to regain her breath in the middle of the floor and a mess of scattered and shredded cards.

In the end, Alice came to this conclusion; bonding ideas always looked better in theory and in afterschool specials. In practice, they were utterly useless.

Still…it was too early to give up.

Right?

"So, er…why don't we try something else?" she suggested weakly, hands clasped together anxiously as she glanced at the two visible occupants in the room. However, it was the unseen occupant who answered her question in the rudest, loudest and most sarcastic way possible.

"OH, SURE! WHY DON'T WE TRY TO PLAY _TAG?!_ AND RUNO CAN BE IT, AND SHE CAN TRY TO CHASE ME OFF A GODDAMN CLIFF OR BACK OUT THE _WINDOW!_"

"MAYBE I SHOULD!"

"Or, _or_," Alice said hurriedly, licking her lips nervously, "we could have a _civil conversation!_ Doesn't that sound nice?"

The sharp increase in Julie's laughter and the stony silence from the other two told Alice perhaps it _wasn't_ too early to give up…it was just too late to do anything about the situation. Was this truly what she would be subjected for who knows how long…?

"…Er…or we could just relax…"

"You know what would be a great idea?" Masquerade's voice had calmed down considerably, she was glad to hear, though the silky suggestiveness in it sent a shiver down her spine.

Runo straightened up in jerking, marionette-like motion, looking appalled. "Don't you _dare_ suggest anything relating to having your own personal harem! I _swear_, I will beat your head in!"

"…_What?!_" The composure in his voice slipped, revealing shock and outrage. Julie's entertained whoops still proved to be of no help whatsoever to the situation. "What makes you think I'd suggest something like that?! What kind of person do you think I _am?!_"

"…The kind of person who'd take advantage of three girls…" Runo was mumbling now…was she actually _ashamed_ of her outburst?

…Was such a thing _possible?_

…Could this be a sign of salvation?

"Well, for your information, Ms Runo, I am _not_ that sort of person."

"…Oh…" Alice felt her heart flutter as Runo faltered, a flicker of uncertainty and self-doubt passing across her features. Maybe…just maybe, she'd give Masquerade a chance…

"…No matter how appealing that idea may be…"

"YOU CREEP!"

…Well…there was salvation lying in ruins. But, they had almost been there, hadn't they? Almost at some sort of understanding, Runo had almost seen that perhaps Masquerade wasn't totally bad, that she could have gotten along with him…perhaps, just maybe…there was a stubborn thread of hope…?

"Honestly, you're such a…such a…"

"Please, refrain from such words as 'creep' and 'jerk'. It would do you well to increase your repertoire of words, Runo dear."

"…BIMBO!"

"…Did you just call me a bimbo?"

The girl went red as Alice gave her a baffled look and threw an irritated glance at Julie, had had proceeded to slap the floor in her over-excessive mirth. "…Yeah."

"…Runo, why did you call him a bimbo?" This was something…that Alice just couldn't ignore. It was just too…_weird_.

"Because…he's…blonde…?"

"Because I'm _blonde?_" Though there was a definite tone of offence in Masquerade's voice, it was ultimately drown out by his sheer incredulity. "Someone with _blue_ hair is discriminating against my natural hair colour? In case you haven't noticed, _Runo_, Julie doesn't have blonde hair and she is a _clear_ bimbo."

"_What?!_" That stopped Julie's chuckles nice and good; she was now staring at the closet door with an indignant pout. "Did he just say _I'm_ a bimbo? I am _sooooo_ not bimbo. No one even _says_ bimbo any more. Like, _really_. That's just totally _lame_."

"You hear that, Runo? You're totally lame."

"SHUT UP! IT WAS THE FIRST THING THAT CAME TO MIND!"

"…Hair discriminator."

"I AM _NOT_ A HAIR DISCRIMINATOR!"

"I bet you think Alice has a bad temper because of her red hair. I bet you make fun of that bad temper too. And that would make you a hypocrite. No one likes a hypocrite, Runo."

"Okay, look, I don't think you're a bimbo because of your hair colour! I just couldn't think of anything else, okay! Does that make you happy?!"

"Of course it doesn't. You were still associating hair colour with whether or not someone was a bimbo. Hypocrite."

"CAN YOU STOP BEING SO IMMATURE?! I DIDN'T MEAN IT, OKAY?!"

"How do I know if you mean that? I personally don't think it's wise to trust the word of a hypocrite…hypocrite."

"JUST SHUT UP!"

The overdramatic sigh from behind the door caused Alice to groan inwardly. "Okay, I apologize…I never took your own thoughts and biases into account. Maybe you had a bad experience with a blonde when you were younger…"

"I'M HAVING A BAD EXPERIENCE WITH A BLONDE RIGHT _NOW!_"

"…Now that's just rude…I'm suddenly having a _splendid_ time…"

"Alice," Tigrerra murmured from the dresser top behind her, "if you have any plans about going back to Moscow…may I come with you?"

Her extreme pity and worry of Tigrerra's mentality should she stay here without some sort of ally moved Alice to nod her head.

* * *

"Alice…do you think I'm a bimbo?"

"Of _course_ you are," Runo snapped moodily, slumping even deeper into her seat as she glared at the table, punishing it for some sort of imagined wrong it had done her. Julie shot her a disdainful look as she herself leaned on her elbows, knuckles pressed to her cheeks.

"I wasn't asking _you_," she shot back sniffily, blowing away a strand of hair from her face with a pout. "I was asking _Alice_."

"How about we talk about how to establish a better understanding with Masquerade?"

Julie blinked at the redhead, who was staring at her interlaced fingers on her lap. "Alice? Do you think I'm a bimbo or not?"

"Why establish a better understanding?" Runo grunted. "Slapping duct tape over his mouth and locking him in the closet would work just as well."

"Alice? Do you?"

"Runo, that's inhumane…"

"Inhumane?! _He's_ the inhumane one!"

"Alice? Are you ignoring me?"

"Runo, it's not nice to talk about others that way…"

"Well, he _is!_ I mean, he talks down to me as though I'm just some sort of…_thing!_"

"Milady, I think you're being a tad bit harsh…he talks down to everyone as though they're some sort of…er, _thing_."

"Aaaaaaliiiiiiiice…can you hear me? Helloooooo~…"

"Tigrerra has a point…"

"_ALICE!_"

The two girls and the marble-formed tigress jumped at Julie's sudden, uncharacteristic bark, all attention now firmly on the Australian, who had a small, affronted frown fixed on Alice.

"Well? What do you think? Am I a bimbo or _not?_"

"…Ah…" Alice blinked rapidly, eyes darting from side to side. "Er…not in the least, Masquerade must've been…very irrational."

"…Oh! Okay~!"

"Oh my god, how stupid can you _be?!_" Runo gave Alice a disapproving look before snapping her head back towards Julie, brimming with animosity. "Julie, you are one of the BIGGEST bimbos that I kn-"

The jangling of the restaurant door's bells interrupted her.

"HEY! DIDN'T YOU SEE THE SIGN?!" Without pausing to ponder over the surprised, apprehensively warning looks from the other two girls, Runo twisted around in her seat, ready to yell the intruder back into the chilly street. "WE'RE CL…closed…"

"Runo!"

His face was shining with sweat and exhaustion, nodding up and down with every huff of breath he tried to reclaim. His hair was messier than usual, if that were possible, tousled with the wind and a sprint, and his ruby-brown eyes were looking at her beseechingly, pathetically.

"What do _you_ want?" Runo said brusquely, turning her back on Dan and glaring at Alice and Julie, who only shrugged helplessly. "The restaurant's closed right now, and I'm not making anything for you…"

"I didn't come here for food, okay?! Runo, just listen…"

"I better not. I might repeat whatever you say to _Masquerade_."

"I WAS AN IDIOT, OKAY?!" She stiffened slightly at the sound of his voice; strained, hoarse, desperate… "I wasn't thinking, I never do, I was just really confused about the whole Masquerade deal, and I acted really stupidly and recklessly, I was just so…I'm _so_ sorry, Runo…Runo, you're my best friend, I don't want you to be mad at me…"

It was like time was slowing down with each word, letting them pound their way clearly and firmly into her head. Her breath was caught up in her throat, a solid lump of trepidation as his voice dropped into an embarrassed mumble…

"Because…I think I might have a crush on you…"


	9. Horrible Comeback

**Chapter Nine**

**A/N**: …It has been SO long since I've so much as glanced at this story…crazy man, crazy stuff…I had to go and reread through it all…and then try to hunt down what I had of a plot outline…which actually isn't…much…but you know…

…And then I sat in front of my computer dully for a good…two days, just going, 'uuuuuuuhhhh…', and then another week or two of just sitting here…dully…moaning…yeah. No fun. My plot bunny is dying, methinks. I blame Hitler's hair. Just because we were watching documentaries on WWII in Military History and I decided that his hairdo really bugs me…

Also…I has a bow. ^^ And I love it. It's meh darlin'.

**Disclaimer**: I dun own Bakugan. Though I now own the word 'spaztastic', which I feel correctly describes all of my writing. And I don't care if someone coined that term before I did. I rule the world, so therefore I own that word. _Spaztastic_.

* * *

"_NO!!_"

"Wha…" Dan blinked helplessly as Julie, eyes glinting, suddenly bolted to her feet with a shriek, hands slamming down on the table in a movement that was all-too-Runo for his comfort. "I-I'm sorry Julie…but it's the truth…Julie…NO---!!"

"LIIIIIIES!!" Dan was pushed ruthlessly to the ground as Julie flew – almost literally _flew_ – at him, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him furiously. "YOU HAVE NO CRUSH ON HER!! IT'S YOUR IMAGINATION! IMAGINATIIIOOOOON!!"

"Julie, you're going to kill him!!" Alice was almost immediately standing above the writhing two, forcefully jerking Julie away and reflecting on just how disconcerting it was to hear Runo's name replaced in that particular sentence.

"You do _not_ have a crush on her!! Do you hear me, Daniel Kuso?! It is nothing but your hormones telling you that she is your one and only, that she is your one true love!! HORMONES!!" Julie thrashed angrily in Alice's grip as Dan rubbed one of his shoulders fearfully, looking up at her in solemn fear with wide eyes. "And you can't believe a _word_ hormones say!!"

"…" Dan shrank slightly under Julie's uncharacteristic fury, skirting away as quickly as he could. "Er…I'm really…sorry…?"

"YOU BETTER BE SORRY, DANIEL KUSO!!"

"Y-yes ma'am…" Dan blanched as Julie tore herself from Alice's grip; to his great relief, she simply stalked back to the table, lips pursed in a pout as she sat back down heavily, glaring at the blue-haired girl who sat across from her…

The girl who was shockingly still and silent…who just _sat_ there, deadpanning towards some far off point above Dan's head…the very corner of her eye _twitching_…

"Erm…" Alice drifted to Runo's side, hesitantly passing a hand over her face. The only reaction she received was a slightly more brutal twitch. The redhead chewed her lip, sending a confused look towards Dan. "Maybe you should go for a bit…I think you might have taken her by surprise. Maybe if you gave her some time to think about it…you know, in a rational and non-violent way…"

"Uh…yeah, of course…" Dan scrambled back to his feet, deep red staining his cheeks as he edged towards the door, giving Runo a desperate glance. "I'll just…go…yeah…"

As a discordant ring of bells and the slam of a door signalled Dan's departure, Alice looked back at Runo; still no break in the blank, spasmodic stare.

"Milady?" Tigrerra rolled against Runo's hand; no reaction. "Milady, Runo? …I do believe she has slipped into a comatose state…"

* * *

When the bedroom door had opened, all the jubilant singing of trumpets and harps that played a victory tune in honor of these moments of peace and privacy (because if this experience were to teach him anything, it was that moments peace and privacy were not only pleasurable, but beneficial to one's health and sanity) petered off into a frantic mumble.

_Because _she_ was back, _she_ was going to finish him off…perhaps he had gone too far…_

"…What's the matter with her?"

His question was answered with a meaningful look from Alice and a _hmph_ from Julie, as he craned his head to peer at the sullenly dull girl floating behind them. "Masquerade, can you please…um…get off Runo's bed?"

And that question was answered by something as equally unhelpful as her reply, to no surprise. "I'm _comfy_. What's the matter with her?"

"She's tired." Masquerade tilted his head to the side curiously; funny, seemed like _Alice_ was a bit more weary…likely this whole matter was succeeding in slowly eroding away her patience. How accomplished he felt now~. "Please, don't argue with us…"

"If I wanted an argument, I'd either call Julie a bimbo again or try poking Runo with something sharp and pointy. What's the matter with her?"

"I'm not a bimbo," Julie piped up instinctively, scowling a bit. "And you, like, call _Runo_ discriminative…"

He disregarded her with a flippant wave of his hand, inquisitive smirk trained on the trio of girls. "You should all know by now that I don't plan on giving up the comfort of a bed when I get treated so _unfairly_. The least you can do is tell me what's the matter with her."

"Masquerade, it's rather private, we just can't _tell_ you…ah, Runo…!!"

Alice and Julie were shoved aside as Runo took the step past the doorframe, coolly walking towards the bookshelf; experience had already warned Masquerade of the ensuing action.

"You know what?" he said airily, ducking and slipping to the floor as a book went whizzing over his head, "I don't really feel like being on the bed, it's kind of _weak_. Only the strong are able to handle hanging out on the floor."

Runo just grunted, stomping towards the bed as he shuffled out of the way, and promptly fell into the rumpled blankets and sheets. "I'm going to sleep. Long day. Tired."

"It _is_ getting a bit late," Alice mumbled, sending a sideways glance at Julie, who surprisingly clicked into the suggestion behind the words, and instantly started whining.

"Aliiiiiiice, it's not _that_ late…and it's not like Marucho and his family are expecting me anytime soon! I mean, they probably wouldn't notice if I went missing or something…they'd probably think I took a wrong turn for the bathroom or something…"

"Julie…"

The silver-haired girl hesitated at the desperate plea in Alice's eyes; finally, with an indignant huff, she spun on her heel and strutted out the door. "Like, whatever, if you want me gone SO much…I'll see you all tomorrow."

"…So…what happened?" Masquerade asked again, as Alice practically dragged herself towards her cot and the door was slammed shut.

"…Closet."

He raised an eyebrow behind the mask at Alice's uncharacteristically curt reply. "Alice, I thought you were the _humane_ one. Surely you realise that a closet is not considered to be suitable sleeping quarters? It's so small…_and_ it smells…kind of like cabbage…"

Alice sighed as she sat down, blinking at him with sleep-heavy eyes. "Masquerade…"

"And clearly I have no inclination of running away. …Well, I do, but that's expected. But it's not like I have any _choice_ as to whether I stay here or not."

"…Well…there's no other beds…"

Masquerade tapped the floor smartly. "Open space, right here. And I swear I won't try to pull any more tricks like I did last night…" He paused, allowing himself a quick, self-satisfied smirk at the memory. "Come on, Alice…I'm trustworthy…"

"Just for saying that you should be locked in the closet permanently," Tigrerra said stiffly.

The blonde just treated the tigress Bakugan with a quick grin that clearly read _shut up_, before turning his appeals back to Alice. "Come on, I won't be a bother…I swear, I'll stay in one spot, I won't go _anywhere_, I'll stay on my floor…you have nothing to fear from me. Come on, please? Pleasepleaseplease?"

"I don't know…"

"PREEEEE-tty pleeeea…?"

"OH MY GOD, DO WHATEVER, JUST SHUT UP!! SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP!!"

"Runo, Alice!" The two girls stiffened at the sound of Mr Misaki's voice, growing louder and louder as he neared the door. "What's with all the noise?"

"Sorry, Mr Misaki," Alice called out as Runo inhaled sharply, glaring at Masquerade and his unhelpful sneer, as though the sheer fury in her eyes would be able to make him evaporate on the spot and prevent the revelation that they were hiding a (dangerous-evil-sarcastic-and-ultimately-sleazy) boy in the room; certainly something that no sane father would approve of. The knob jiggled. "We're just getting dressed!"

All knob-related movements instantly froze. "Oh…well, I don't want to hear any more loud noise from you two, understand?"

"No worries, Dad," Runo assured loudly, shoulders slumping in relief as they listened to his heavy footsteps walking away, eyes still trained on Masquerade. "You stupid idiot," she hissed through gritted teeth, "you nearly got us caught!"

Masquerade ignored the accusation, and the chance to point out that the blame should actually be pointed at her. "I still win, right?"

"Win _what?_"

"Being able to not sleep in a closet. Duh."

"…Oh, whatever. But if you _dare_ touch me…"

"Because touching you as you sleep is _every_ teenage boy's fantasy," Masquerade replied sardonically, but grinning in victory nonetheless. And smug enough to both ignore Runo's answering snarl, her disgusted expression, _and_ say something that could be possibly lethal to his well-being. "So…when are you two going to get changed?"

"…"

"I mean, good old Pops out there would be awfully confused if you go to the bathroom to get changed after saying you were changing in _here_…"

"…"

"Just thought I should point out that flaw in your brilliant plan. You know, because I'm a nice guy and all…"

Runo suddenly spoke up, neatly cutting him off. "You _pervert_."

* * *

**A/N**: …Yes, it is a horrible comeback for this fic after about…two months? Something like that of not being touched…but…it's hard…and…yeah…it's rather shorter than usual…but I had to get SOMETHING out, and…and…I'M SORRY---!! I AM A TRULY HORRIBLE PERSON!! FORGIVE MEEEEEE!!

…But yeah…one of my New Year's resolutions was to get back on track with my fanfiction…so yeah…^^ Let's hope I succeed…


End file.
